NATO does not challenge Russia's security, but Russian imperialism – Estonian Prime Minister
Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas has stressed that Estonia's accession to the North Atlantic Alliance was the country’s free choice, and Russia's claim that NATO enlargement threatens its security is a fiction.
Source: Kallas, in an interview with ERR, following her speech during the Shangri-La Dialogue security conference in Singapore, as reported by European Pravda
Details: Speaking at the conference, the Estonian prime minister refuted the NATO-related Russian narrative.
Quote: "Joining NATO was the free will of the Estonian people, which no one forced on us. Here the narrative is of a NATO expansion that has nothing to do with the will of its members – that is what I am here to break down," she explained
Details: Another thesis of Kallas' speech concerned Russia as "the last colonial power, trying to colonize territory and expand its empire".
She also pointed out that those who accuse NATO of expansion and escalation are adopting the imperialist rhetoric and ideology promoted by Russia. "NATO is not a threat to Russian security, just Russian imperialism," Kallas stated.
The third point of the Estonian prime minister's speech was a call for a proper response to the war in order not to encourage other countries to resort to it.
"If aggression is allowed to pay off, leave you with more territory or assets after a while, others with more power will also start using it," Kallas believes.
For reference: The Shangri-La Dialogue, a security conference organised by the International Institute for Strategic Studies, is currently taking place in Singapore. It is attended by representatives of Asian governments, as well as a wide range of Western representatives, including those from Ukraine.
Background: The UK's Defence Secretary Ben Wallace believes that NATO must force member states to increase their military spending if the Alliance intends to effectively deter Russia and deal with other threats to transatlantic security.
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