After their meeting in the European Parliament, in Brussels, Roberta METSOLA, EP President and Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, hold a joint press point.

Brussels

press point

EU - Estonia (T)

METSOLA, Roberta (EPP, MT, EP President)

KALLAS, Kaja (EE)

president's agenda

Joint press point by Roberta METSOLA, EP President and Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister

https://api.multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/documents/20125/71123858/1687855900163_I243333Chapters%5BSD-EN%5D.srt

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, Good morning, just good morning. First of all, I am very happy to welcome my good friend, Prime Minister Kaja Kallas back to the European Parliament. Dear Kaja Kallas, it is a pleasure to see you again. We last met earlier this month in Moldova and still so much has happened since then. Today we talked about the situation in Russia, its impact on our security and our continued support for Ukraine.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, We will also address issues that we will continue to discuss at the European Council tomorrow, the need for an upgraded long term EU budget, the upcoming European elections, and our strong support for EU enlargement. Let me also applaud Estonia's unwavering support for Ukraine's freedom. Per capita, your assistance is unmatched. Your contribution has also been critical in ensuring support for Ukraine's EU and NATO membership path.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, An issue on which the European Parliament has also been very strong. The latest events in Russia have raised a number of questions relating to the internal dynamics and fragility of the Russian state, its effects on the invasion of Ukraine and for European security. So for the EU, the most important thing is to stay the course. We cannot be distracted by Kremlin politics and we need to continue with and keep stepping up our support for Ukraine.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, In this context, a couple of final points. I welcome very much last night's agreement on joint procurement and defence. It will help Member States to replenish their stocks, to boost efficiency of our defence industry and to ensure deliveries of weaponry to Ukraine.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, And together with the Joint Procurement of Ammunition Act, on which we expect an agreement in early July already, we will seriously supply and boost our supply side of the market and help provide the ammunition that Ukraine needs in order to fight back against the Russian aggression.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, We also need still to close the loopholes internationally and increase our sanctions on Russia. And here we welcome the 11 package of sanctions, an additional €50 billion in support for reconstruction announced last week. And we finally need to advance on using frozen Russian assets to finance Ukraine's reconstruction. Now, I know that Estonia is also a frontrunner on this. You have to thank you.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, Dear Roberta, dear journalists, it is very good to be back here in the European Parliament, especially this Brussels building, that it was sort of my home for four years and also the start of our friendship. So in this institution.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, So I want to thank European Parliament and also you, Roberta, for your active role and strong moral leadership, also supporting Ukraine and other countries standing for their European choice, such as Moldova, for example. Brave Ukrainians have demonstrated that it's possible to break the back of the aggressor. It is increasingly clear that Ukraine is winning this war. For that, we must continue our unity and decisiveness, also supporting them.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, There is no room for hesitation and to step back to the opposite, we must continue to increase the price of Russian aggression and developments within Russia should not blur our focus in this regard and our resolve. It is not only the battlefield success that will decide the outcome of this war. In addition to the continued military aid, we have to show the Kremlin that it cannot outlast Ukraine economically.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, So Ukraine's victory also depends on our ability to dry up Kremlin's income to finance the aggression. There is also fight for freedom, but there is also fight for justice. Never in history have the Russian leaders faced justice for the atrocities committed. That is why we keep seeing Russia trying to conquer its neighbours and continuing the same pattern of violence.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, And that is why we need to establish an international tribunal for the crime of aggression with the large international legitimacy and with no immunity for the Russian leaders. These are the parameters I suggest that the European Council table now for the other leaders. Doing the important track of giving Ukraine hope and clear path to its Euro-Atlantic future is also working.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, And a year ago we provided conditions. And I have no doubt Ukraine will work hard to meet them this year and start EU accession talks. As I said in Ukraine, there is no discount for them. They have to fulfil the criteria 110%, but I am sure that they are able to do so. We are also committed to the reconstruction of Ukraine, which must start now combined with the EU integration and reforms.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, It can become the perfect boost for Ukraine's economy, but is unfair that the taxpayers of democratic countries should pay for the war damage caused by Russia. Ukraine is the victim of Russian war and according to the international law, it must be compensated by Russia. We need a solution that would allow to use the frozen assets which have been seized with sanctions from Russian citizens and companies to compensate the damages.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, My government is also working with the legal draft to do this, but we need a European solution. So we hope that others will follow and we will find speedily a joint approach also within the EU. The new security reality also demands new solutions within the European Union. So more than a year ago in Versailles, European leaders agreed to invest more and better in defence capabilities.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, We need to follow that with concrete actions. European defence needs a very decisive lift. We need a defence effective Europe able to provide the transatlantic security here. This means also that the defence industry has to adjust to the new security footing. We, in the European Union and have pulled ourselves together before. If you think about the pandemic recovery and mitigating the energy crisis. These are the cases in point.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, Another EU wide strategic effort is due and this time we really need it. For the European defence. The security situation is not in any way better, it's not going to be better for long and we have to prepare for our defence. Where individual efforts fall short, unity must step forward. The EU needs to continue demonstrating leadership and also its geopolitical weight.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, I'm very happy that we have been able to do it this far since the war has been going on. We have been united and strong and we have to remain united and strong, not only supporting Ukraine but also boosting our own defence in order for us to be ready with the new security situation. Thank you.

Q&A, Question regarding the defence clause in the EU which says that Members States must help each other if attacked. And another question for the Estonian PM about the 1 million rounds of ammunition.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, So in Article 42/7, yes, it is relevant. It is relevant not only for those countries that are militarily or constitutionally neutral, but also in order for us to really fulfil what as a parliament we have been saying for a long time and complete a proper security and defence union. If this one and a half years has shown us is that Member States were not prepared, not all of them had fulfilled their capabilities.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, We are asking questions as to whether when we talk about strategic autonomy, we are autonomous from a defence perspective and that's where 42/7 would be able to give us the reality check as to whether if there had to be an attack on any Member State, how we would pooling our resources.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, What on the other hand, what we have managed to do since the beginning of the invasion is, for example, use solutions outside the treaties such as a European peaceful facility, etc. All of this which we would not have thought would be needed. But if 2022 and 2023 continues to show us they are needed and we need to be prepared.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, Yes, I would actually want to echo what Roberta said. I think we have to also think about our own defence and not only to help Ukraine, but also how we are able to boost our own defence. When we talk about defence spending year, for example, in European Union, because that is what is based on.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, Then, from 1999 until 2021, the investment spending in defence for Europe increased 19.7%. The same number for the same period of time for America was 65.7% and for Russia it was 292% and China 595%. So, basically 600%. So, that means we have a huge gap to fulfil in our defence spenditure.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, And then, we have to think outside of the box. Not only what we have done so far, but what we can do also more. Regarding the proposal Artillery Shells to Ukraine, there should be more than 25% of this proposal already fulfilled. Just to remind that there were seven pillars. The second pillar was the joint procurement to really get the ammunition for Ukraine and also for our own warehouses.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, So, it needs the boosting over the defence industry also on the other side. So, the funding on one side, but also the industry to speed up the production in order to fulfil this. So, I'm happy that this initiative was positively seen and also is in practice already so fast. But, definitely we have to do more.

Q&A, Question regarding on the situation in Belarus in terms of security with the recent events in Russia and the Wagner Group. Second question on Roberta Metsola's position on the Directive about Sexual Violence against Women.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, Thank you. On Belarus, we have been considering Belarus as the coup aggressor here, and so they have been working together with Russia all the time. So, what we know about Russia and Belarus is that they are unpredictable and they are dangerous. And that hasn't changed.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, It is very clear for everybody in Europe now what we have seen over the years, that they are unpredictable and they are dangerous. So, of course we have to prepare. And therefore what I said before, boosting the defence industry and our own defence readiness in this regard is of utmost importance.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, It seems to me that there might be feeling amongst some that have much better neighbours than we do, that this is all going to just go away, but this is here for the long haul and we have to make the steps necessary for that.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, On your question, first of all, this Parliament has been the frontrunner on women's rights, even before different Member States reached, let's say, or started to reach the ambitions of this Parliament.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, I start by referring, for example, to the ratification of the Istanbul Convention, which is something that has been called by this Parliament for many years for ratification by all Member States.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, In terms of the specific discussion, this is about criminal law. And whenever we talk about criminal law, there is always the amount of competence that the European Parliament or a piece of legislation can have and a Member State is about shared competence.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, Here, the as you said, the position of Member States is different. The discussion is ongoing. However, that would not prevent the European Parliament from expressing a position that would at least ask the governments to reflect.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, As long as we can be around the table with the different ministers of the different government in order to see whether we can, because we are facing a crisis of violence in Europe.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, Women are increasingly the target. Every week we hear of new stories and each and every Member State. And this is something that is not going to go away. And it is not only about best practices or recommendations that will deal with it, but legislation that can be enforced. Thank you.