Ratas visiting Spain, Portugal ahead of Estonia's EU presidency
Prime Minister Jüri Ratas is visiting Spain and Portugal on Monday as part of a string of preparatory foreign visits ahead of Estonia's taking over the presidency of the Council of the EU on July 1.
Ratas will meet with Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy in Madrid, after which he will depart for Lisbon, where he will meet with Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa.
The meetings will focus on migration, the establishment of an energy alliance, the enforcement of the Paris Agreement as well as the formation of a digital single market by 2018.
"We expect that both prime ministers will visit the summit scheduled to take place in Tallinn in September focusing on the opportunities and challenges of information society," Ratas said.
The Estonian prime minister said that visiting member states prior to the presidency is a great opportunity to introduce them to the priorities of Estonia's presidency, but also to hear other countries' expectations for and thoughts on the following half-year. "Topics of key importance to Estonia and the country being visited, but also to the EU, will be discussed," he added.
Ratas is scheduled to return to Estonia on Tueday morning.
Editor: Aili Vahtla
