The European Parliament elections campaign is already in full swing, even though most parties haven't even nominated their candidates yet. Even within the Reform Party, [your] internal elections still lie ahead. In light of the dismal state the Reform Party is in, should it frankly be admitted that [the party] may earn one seat or end up winning no seats at all?

Not a single seat at all isn't very realistic despite that. The goal is to retain two seats. Two seats is realistic because European Parliament elections concern Europe and what the elected representatives will do together with their other European colleagues. And individual elections certainly play a bigger role here than in local government or Riigikogu elections.

In 2004, voters punished the then-Res Publica Party, which didn't earn a single seat in the European Parliament despite being the leading party in the [Estonian] government. They had also come to power with very high levels of support and high hopes, but all of that was quickly squandered. Aren't you afraid of [something similar happening]?

No, there's no point worrying, and I don't actually see too many parallels in that either. The Res Publica of that time was still very young, experiencing a very rapid rise followed by a swift decline. The Reform Party has a pretty long history of dealing with developments in Estonian society. In that regard, I believe that our society's understanding has also still evolved over these 20 years. And representing Estonia in the context of the EU is somewhat different from the work of MPs, for example. There's still a distinction here.

Does the mutual mudslinging between Andrus Ansip and Kaja Kallas now increase your chances? 

That's actually impossible to gauge. And it's difficult to say based on what argument people will ultimately end up making their choice. But the confrontation between Ansip and Kallas that has gone public actually shouldn't, if approached remotely substantively, have much of an impact on that.

On top of that anyway is this situation where Andrus Ansip wants to run and Kaja Kallas will not be running. This personal conflict doesn't translate in any way into the elections.

But the party leader has to show support for the entire electoral list, especially for the top candidate. This is undoubtedly a difficult situation for Kallas, with the list including a black sheep named Andrus Ansip, is it not?

Well I'm not going to overdramatize it. My gut feeling is that if Andrus Ansip is on that list, then Ansip and Kallas' rivalry or public spat isn't actually going to affect the Reform Party's electoral list in the campaign or at the elections. I'm quite certain of that. Although we have major trouble in the house, again – these two people are not on the same electoral list. This fear has been exaggerated.

If Ansip receives more votes than even Urmas Paet in the [party's] internal elections, should the former party chair indeed top the list? Or will the list committee and board move him downward?

That's theoretically possible. As of right now, nothing can be ruled out because party members haven't even had the chance yet to vote on who will even make the nine-member list, should there be more than nine people interested. Internal elections are the first round, then the list committee will submit its own proposals, and only then does the board and general assembly have to approve it.

And it's been the case on previous occasions too, including in the last elections, that the list committee changed the order of the names.

What's more, we've also seen in previous elections, both in terms of the Reform Party and in terms of others, that the order isn't absolute either, because the final outcome still depends on whom people vote for.

The European Parliament elections and specifically the Reform Party are faced with one big question mark that actually determines a great deal. The candidate for European commissioner will be coming from the Reform Party, but we still don't know who they are. Would revealing this name clear things up?

Of course that would add clarity. If only in terms of who the candidate is. It would add clarity, but this discussion as such hasn't taken place, at least not at the level of the so-called elected bodies of the Reform Party.

You haven't asked within the party itself why this hasn't been done? Is the prime minister simply keeping her options open until the last minute? Wouldn't this decision make it clear to everyone once and for all whether Kallas actually wants to remain prime minister with the current government? Or whether the party will get a new leader and we'll get a new government?

Well, the main answer, of course, is that there's still some time for that. That's actually objectively the case too. We're no exception; we also don't know who the other member states' candidates for commissioner are either. The elections themselves aren't even until June.

So to that end there's nothing wrong here yet; there's time, and all these things have to happen in their own order. But of course if we knew the name of the [candidate for] commissioner, on one hand that would make things clearer. But on the other, it's up to the government to designate.

From a campaign perspective, it would probably be easier for you if the name were on the table and everyone knows the next steps? Wouldn't it ultimately be easier to put the list in place if all the pieces were in place?

Maybe so. I'm not so sure this is overly important now in that sense. In terms of the campaign, the most important thing, in my opinion, is what to expect from people if they should be elected. Do they have European policy experience in security and foreign policy? I believe that should be the most important aspect.

Some steps cannot be taken too early. The Reform Party could even come up with who could be the candidate. But that is not yet enough; it requires a government decision, and formally, the government can't actually make any decisions at all until the European Parliament elections are over and the state has been officially asked for this candidate.

At the same time, it is perfectly clear that the substantive decision is actually still in the hands of the leaders of the Reform Party. Government partners' ministers aren't going to start challenging it if, for example, Urmas Paet is put forward as candidate for commissioner. It just needs to be formally confirmed, and the Reform Party will surely get [that approval] from its coalition partners.

This assumes the same government remaining in office, but I suppose that's just a matter of temporal dimension. Perhaps certain things aren't wise to do too early, because we never know what life will bring us.

Should the party chair offer you the post, are you prepared to immediately say yes?

It would interest me in terms of the nature of the work in itself, which I've said before and I can tell you again, yes.

There's also been talk of several other candidates: Hanno Pevkur, Kristen Michal or chiefly Kaja Kallas herself. What makes you a better fit for the position of commissioner than the aforementioned candidates?

I wouldn't say I'm better suited. In that sense I'd base my assessment only on what I know about myself – that I've essentially been involved with foreign and security policy for over 20 years, including EU affairs. That should be sufficient experience to work in the European Commission.

I have experience working in the Estonian government, including serving as minister of foreign affairs. I've twice earned a mandate as MEP, including as current vice-chair of the European Parliament's Committee on Foreign Affairs. That is also why I even dare answer your question with yes, I may be interested in the position of commissioner.

You've been in the European Parliament for quite some time now, but at the same time you are an absolutely phenomenal figure in Estonian politics. You always earn a lot of votes in Estonian elections too. More than 9,000 votes in the most recent Riigikogu elections, for example. Do you personally feel that actually you could return to domestic Estonian politics? Returning hasn't actually been successful for MEPs, but perhaps you might be an exception?

It's hard to say if I'd be an exception. Personally I feel like I've never actually been away from Estonia, and I believe those election results you mentioned actually confirm that to some extent. It's not like it's possible working in the European Parliament to forget where you came from. What the future holds, no one knows for sure. In that sense, I'm not ruling anything out.

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