On the 104th anniversary of Estonia’s independence, the Estonian American National Council condemns in the strongest terms possible the invasion of Ukraine by Russian President Putin’s forces on false pretenses and in blatant defiance of international law. We stand in solidarity with Ukrainians in their fight to maintain their sovereignty and pursue democratic values and institutions. We call on Estonian Americans to join in showing support for United States actions aimed to ensure the security of Ukraine, Estonia, and the rest of Europe.
EANC urges its constituents to contact their Members of Congress and the White House to express distress and anger about the invasion of Ukraine and concern about the possibility of future Russian actions threatening the Baltic countries and other NATO members. Suggestions for specific requests include:
- Immediate imposition of the full force of sanctions against Putin and his regime.
- Increases to U.S. defense funding for Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania under programs such as the Baltic Security Initiative, the European Deterrence Initiative, and Foreign Military Financing.
- Establishment of permanent U.S. forces stationed on Baltic soil.
EANC is a parent organization of the Joint Baltic American National Committee and a member of the Central and East European Coalition. We are working closely with them to determine the best courses of action for our organizations to take as the situation evolves and echo the statements already issued by our colleagues. In these dark times, we will continue to carry the promise that freedom and the will of the people will prevail in Ukraine as they did in Estonia in 1918.
