Secretary of State Antony Blinken Visited Tallinn
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was in Estonia on March 8 as part of a tour of NATO’s eastern flank. “NATO will defend every inch of its territory and the U.S. commitment to Article 5 is rock solid,” Secretary of State Blinken confirmed at a press conference alongside Prime Minister Kaja Kallas in Tallinn. Kallas called for more action from the west and said “new tools” are needed until “Putin’s war machine has been paralyzed”. Blinken was on a one-day visit to Tallinn amid a two-day tour of the Baltic states following visits to Poland and Moldova. (Pg 1)
More Than 12,000 Ukrainian War Refugees Have Arrived in Estonia
As of March 10, 12,488 Ukrainian citizens and their family members have arrived in Estonia, including 4,251 children. An average of 1,800 refugees arrive per day and there are no restrictions on their arrival due to visa-free travel. Most of those who have arrived up to now have come to Estonia to join their relatives or friends. 3,000 people are in transit. Nearly 2,000 people, including 472 children, have needed accommodation services prepared by the state. As of March 9, war refugees can apply for temporary protection. This status gives access to all services, allows a person to obtain a residence permit in one day, to go to work, school or kindergarten, and to receive health insurance on the same basis as all Estonian people. (Pg 6)
