"Finnish President Alexander Stubb called this afternoon," Karis wrote in a post on his official Facebook page. "I congratulated him on his inauguration and invited him on a state visit to Estonia at the end of May."

According to the Office of the President, Karis and Stubb acknowledged together that the region's security has become stronger than ever before. "We're finally all together in the strongest security alliance in the world – NATO," Karis noted.

"Our region is integrated – we're thrilled to see the [Swedish flag] flying at NATO headquarters!" he added in a tweet.

The two presidents further discussed friendly and intensive bilateral cooperation as well as opportunities for continuing to support Ukraine.

"We will continue providing maximum aid, stick to our promise of giving 0.25 percent of our GDP to support Ukraine as well as do everything we can to ensure that Ukraine wins this war," Karis said, referring to Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine.

Had a very good conversation with president @alexstubb, looking forward to greet him in , for a State Visit in May. & will be working together on all issues to further the excellent ties. Our region is integrated - we're thrilled to see the flying at NATO headquarters! pic.twitter.com/rncpbMHOsm

— Alar Karis (@AlarKaris) March 12, 2024

The Finnish president's state visit to Estonia is planned for May 27-29.

During this time, they will also be visiting Tartu, which currently holds the title of European Capital of Culture but was also Karis' hometown and longtime home, including during the years he served variously as rector of the Estonian University of Life Sciences (EMÜ) and the University of Tartu (TÜ) and also as director of the Estonian National Museum (ERM) – from which he stepped down after being elected president in 2021.

"You are always welcome in Estonia," Karis assured his new counterpart.

On March 1, former prime minister Alexander Stubb was inaugurated as president of Finland after winning a runoff election against former foreign minister Pekka Haavisto last month.

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!