New Estonian ambassador to Moscow: Difficult to make long-term plans in Estonian-Russian relations
Estonian Ambassador to Moscow Arti Hilpus handed over his credentials to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday. He said there are positive signs in the relations between the two nations.
“It is difficult to make long-term plans in Estonian-Russian relations because as we can see in Russian internal and foreign politics, the situation can change very quickly,” Hilpus told ERR.
He said it is sensible to move forward with small, positive and constructive steps.
“Border treaty ratification is a very important moment,” he said, adding that the Estonian side began the ratification process in the Parliament a few days ago, and that Russia has also started necessary proceedings. “Hopefully the long process will come to a conclusion in the next few months,” Hilpus said.
He pointed out there are other positive signs, and relations have improved since the meeting of Estonian FM Marina Kaljurand and her Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in New York. “The return of Eston Kohver, which was a very bad experience, but the solution of which eliminated one disrupting factor from our relations, means that we no longer have to bring it up at every step,” Hilpus added.
He said the two foreign ministries have also restored constructive relations, meeting in Tallinn last week. More meetings are planned for the future.
Previously, Hilpus was Estonia's top representative in the Balkans, and before that in Norway and Iceland. The previous ambassador to Moscow, Jüri Luik, now heads the International Center for Defense and Security.
Editor: J.M. Laats