Eesti 200's program is future oriented, innovative and geared toward a stronger Europe. Our candidates are YES-people who are experts in their chosen fields and sport a long-term vision for Europe. We stand firm in the defense of our core values, which are Estonianness, innovative spirit and liberalism. Estonia is strong only if Europe is strong as we decided 30 years ago that we'll never be alone again!

Eesti 200 has promised change in Estonia, Tallinn and Europe. We aim to keep those promises.

The incoming European Parliament will be the most decisive one in the history of the EU as Europe faces existential questions of security, enlargement and economy.

We are living pivotal times when our core values and the entire post-WWII world order are at stake. Freedom, democracy and the validity of the UN Charter are in jeopardy. We must ask ourselves here in the West whether we're prepared to defend these principles. Not just theoretically, but also in the form of armed resistance if need be, just as the Ukrainians are doing now.

The Ukrainians are shedding blood not just in the defense of their existence and freedom, not just in the defense of our freedom, but in our stead. The price of freedom is felt once it is lost.

Here, on the eastern front, we still remember through family stories what it means to be occupied, killed, deported and cut off from freedom, which is also why we are prepared to defend that freedom. But many who have been lucky enough to enjoy the fruits of freedom for many generations no longer understand that freedom is not a given and needs to be fought for every day. Wishful thinking according to which life will continue much as it has once the war [in Ukraine] ends is just that and a very slippery slope. Unfortunately, there is too much of it in Europe.

No matter our plans for the future, they depend on one thing: whether Russia will win or lose the war it has unleashed with all its horrors. In the latter eventuality, war will come to Europe, and it is not something we want to see. That is why we must take action to support the Ukrainians while building up a stronger Europe.

Eesti 200 is a master plan party. We have a long-term plan for Estonia and Europe. Our program is three-pronged: Estonianness, innovation and liberalism. Europe needs all three to boost its global influence, strengthen its defensive capacity and ensure, through personal freedoms and democratic values, the recent level of prosperity. Every member state is important, which is why we do support discarding consensual policy, which would seriously weaken our [Estonia's] negotiating position.

There must not be gray zones in Europe. Pursuing a policy of neutrality in the neighborhoods of Moscow amounts to giving Vladimir Putin's aggression the green light. The most striking proof of freedom no longer being a given is the decision of the Swedes to join NATO after 200 years of strict neutrality. NATO is the only functional security guarantee, while it cannot function without a strong EU that is willing to invest in defense. That is why we must further strengthen the transatlantic bond and considerably boost Europe's ability to defend itself.

Enlargement policy is in our DNA. We joined the EU and NATO 20 years ago, taking advantage of a rather narrow window of opportunity. Without membership in the two organizations, we would likely not be free today. The reality is just that brutal.

Both the EU and NATO must expand. It is not just about what we'll be giving, but also what we'll get in return. Next to security, Europe's global competitiveness, resource availability and innovation are at stake. Ukraine belongs in NATO and the EU.

Europe must invest many times what it does now in independent defensive capacity, which is why the EU must, next to agriculture, invest in its defense through its defense industry. The €100 billion Eurobond initiative provides the opportunity.

We need to kickstart the European economy, dial back regulation and provide more freedom through innovation in enterprise. In global competition, we must support knowledge-based economy and make the EU the land of major global business headquarters.

The European Union was formed to protect the values of democracy, free speech, personal freedoms and the right to self-determination. Freedom comes with responsibility, which is why we cannot let into Europe people who do not share these values.

The strength of the EU lies in the education of our people. To make our economy the global leader, we need to import brains from all over the world and boost our competitiveness through innovation.

Sprawling EU regulations are stifling our enterprise and overregulation our initiative. That is why it is the position of Eesti 200 that the bureaucratic complexity of the state needs to be hidden from people's view through a personal state approach, which also applies at the EU level.

In order to spearhead important reforms in Europe, things must first be in order at home. Eesti 200 is part of the national government as well as that of Tallinn now.

We are working on major reforms from education to the personal state concept. We've set the goal of doubling the Estonian economy by 2035 for which we have an ambitious plan put together by experts and entrepreneurs. All our decisions must answer the question of how can they contribute to growth, while keeping in mind that resource management must be sustainable.

The Estonian economy is down and hoping it will automatically bounce back is just a way for fools to make themselves feel better. We are no longer a convergent economy pulled by wealthier states. We are no longer a cheap labor country living off outsourcing. We need to become a lot more competitive through innovation and give entrepreneurs the power they need to realize their plans.

The state budget is deep in deficit. We're looking at a hole of around a billion euros in next year's budget. While we have hiked our defense spending by leaps and bounds, there was never any real alternative to that decision.

We need to fill the holes created by the previous government's irresponsible fiscal policy. Before thinking of new taxes, we must reduce state spending. We need to dial back the cost of administration, which requires tough decisions.

We do not want to spend more than we have to culminate in a situation where people from international organizations will come to Estonia to make our decisions for us. We need to cope on our own. That is why there is no other path than giving all ministries a strict austerity target.

We need to carry out the reforms we've promised. A state budget review, personal state concept, education reform and especially switching to teaching in Estonian are just some of the things we're responsible for.

Even though there are ideological differences between us and the Social Democrats when it comes to austerity versus taxes, we need to find solutions for fixing public finances by this August. Borrowing to pay for fixed costs is not a solution, but constitutes laying a heavy burden on future generations. The state can only borrow for reforms and investments aimed at growth and more effective administration.

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