I have lived and studied in this city, I have learned to love and miss this city. While studying at the University of Tartu, the spirit of Tartu completely took over me, and looking back, I can say that studying at the university was the best time of my life.
Let us start from the beginning. Congratulations, dear Estonia! 105 years is a dignified age for everyone, including a country. Have you thought about the fact that traditions are not necessary for the establishment of a country, but traditions and symbols have an important role to play in the survival of a country?
The anniversary of the Republic is a sacred tradition and symbol for all of us, just like the blue-black-white flag flying proudly on top of Tall Hermann Tower. Regrettably, there are some people who would rather celebrate the summer days of the province or the oblast but fortunately, they are a minority. Therefore, they cannot ruin our celebrations.
The speech of the prime minister right before the anniversary here in Tartu is also a tradition that deserves a little attention. It all started when Andrus Ansip was once the mayor of Tartu. In 2002, he decided to invite the prime minister, who at that time was Siim Kallas, to give a speech on the anniversary of the republic in Vanemuine. Thus, 21 years ago, began a tradition that has been honoured by six prime ministers along with me. It is a lovely tradition and I hope it lasts forever, regardless of what trials lie ahead.
Dear friends!
This year, we celebrate our anniversary at a very dark time. The anniversary of Estonia is overshadowed by the horrors that are happening not far from us in Ukraine. These horrors are unfortunately committed by our very neighbour. Russia invaded Ukraine with a full-scale war a year ago on 24 February and hoped to achieve quick success. In three days, they hoped to capture Kyiv, destroy the Ukrainian leadership, and install a puppet government subordinate to the Kremlin. As we all know, that is not what happened. It quickly became clear that the Russian army was not the second strongest army in the world, but the second strongest army in Ukraine. Vladimir Putin has called the collapse of the Soviet Union the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century. If this is the case, then with his attack on Ukraine, Putin will bring this so-called catastrophe to fruition once and for all. Not for Ukraine or Europe – for Russia. On 24 February 2022, Russia signed itself out of the civilized world.
I do not think that Russia will ever become a reliable partner in the eyes of the rest of the world again. On the contrary, one could say that Putin destroyed the future of Russia with this war. We, on the other hand, have to get used to the idea that we live next to a terrorist pariah state and we must stay alert at all times.
I do not know whether, if at all, the time will come when the Russian people will ask themselves and their leaders, “Why did we need this war?” Does Russia not have enough land, are they suffering from a lack of natural resources, or what the hell did they hope to achieve with this attack? Only the Russians themselves can answer this. All we can do is be better prepared while they try to ascertain those who are responsible.
People, and especially politicians, often tend to see things not as they are, but as they want to see things. A typical example and question is whether the war in Ukraine is the war of Putin or the Russian people. I believe that the answer and responsibility in this matter is the same – it is a war of the Russian people and a common crime of the Russian people. As long as the Russian people are unable to change the system which keeps recreating itself, constantly empowering autocrats who will never give up this position voluntarily or even as a result of elections, the Russian people will also be responsible for the crimes that such absolute power inevitably leads to. Our task is to help ensure that the crimes and criminals of Russia are severely punished at the international tribunal. Hopefully, this will help break this cycle of wars in the future.
Dear listeners!
I can imagine how some of you who are listening to me right now are wondering if I am not going to talk about the concerns and joys of Estonia. Worry not – I am. Actually, my entire speech so far has dealt with the concerns of Estonia. The war against Ukraine is also a war against us. Even though our people are not dying from bombs exploding, we are still part of this war. If Ukraine had fallen, as the Russians planned, the Baltic states could have been Russia’s next target. To quote Russian leaders, “The independence of Estonia is Russia’s unfinished business.” We must help Ukraine and we must prepare so that this war never reaches our border. We must talk about the atrocities that Russia is perpetrating in Ukraine, both to our own people and to our allies. We must not keep quiet now because otherwise, years from now, no one will remember what others said. They will only remember that we remained silent.
We have been at the forefront of helping Ukraine both in terms of providing military aid and accepting Ukrainian refugees. I am incredibly proud of this. Russian aggression and the subsequent arrival of Ukrainians fleeing the war to Estonia once again showed Estonian people at their best. The helpfulness and warmth with which we welcomed war refugees and the kindness with which we support Ukraine in their ongoing fight show our greatness. We can argue, be mean, and seem reserved, but our hearts are in the right place, and this is most evident in times of trouble. Nowadays, people are proud to be Estonian – both in Estonia and outside Estonia. We are considered, respected, and listened.
It is clear that this war has left its mark on all of our lives in one way or another. Regardless, let us not for a moment, even in our darkest moments, forget that we are a very successful nation that can help those in need. Helping Ukraine makes us great and generous. Turning our backs on those in need and only focusing on ourselves in all relationships makes us small and petty.
After the devastating years of occupation, Estonia has been able to successfully rebuild its country. We have many achievements to be proud of. The most important of these is our freedom. According to the newly published human freedom index, Estonia ranks third in freedom in the world. Only Switzerland and New Zealand ranked higher. We are not only the freest country among Eastern European countries – we are the freest country in both the European Union and NATO. Unfortunately, here lies our concern: our neighbour Russia is in the 119th place on the same list, sharing this ranking with Mali.
To allow you to better understand my concern, I will read you a few lines from Paul-Eerik Rummo,
“Violence loves freedom
it wants to win and conquer it.”
Russia attacking Ukraine confirms this – violence loves freedom, it wants to win and conquer it.
Dear friends!
The war unleashed by Russia involves more than direct aggression against another country. It means more than killings, bombings, rapes, mass graves, and fake referendums. In addition to all this, Russia is waging an energy war across Europe and the world in the hope that the energy crisis will make voters and leaders of democratic countries question the necessity of helping Ukraine.
It is no secret that the economies of all developed countries have been affected by this war. Including that of Estonia. There is nothing positive about the increase in energy prices and the resulting high inflation. There is also nothing positive about the fact that our budget is in deficit and the debt burden of the state is growing. We have been forced to borrow money both to repay old debts and to invest in defence spending. That is the price of our freedom.
It is clear that a state budget deficit is not sustainable and we must aim to return to a balanced budget policy.
To quote old Estonian folk wisdom in a poem by Hando Runnel:
You cannot play a borrowed kannel for long,
you cannot survive on a borrowed loaf of bread,
if you have your own kannel, play it for as long
as you want, if you baked your own bread, eat it
We have to balance the revenues and expenditures of our country again. Low debt is our competitive advantage, not a disadvantage to get rid of.
Our state must come to the aid of those who need help, especially in times of crisis. We have done this with the current government and will continue to do so in the future if necessary.
However, we also have to remember that the government cannot solve any crisis alone. We can only do this together, by coming together and living frugally.
Dear listeners!
Our recent past has been and our present is full of problems. The government and the Estonian people have had to spend a lot of time and effort on dealing with the COVID-19 crises, the war, and the current energy crisis. Tomorrow is a new day and life will continue even after 5 March. What will that future look like? That depends on us. We must not forget that Russia wants to divide our societies in every possible way. One of these ways is the aforementioned energy war. Dividing societies also means undermining the credibility of the parliamentary state system and its agencies. We see this in Estonia as well – endless “procedural issues”, swearing and shouting in the parliament hall, presenting alternative facts as the truth, attacking the prosecution service of the Defence Forces, the court system, and so on and so forth. who benefits from this?
We cannot choose a new and friendly eastern neighbour and prevent the spread of viruses in the world. Still, there are things we can influence. What kind of relationships we have with our allies and friends depends on us. We can ensure that Estonia will never be alone again. We can ensure that Estonia is led by people who dare to stand up to brutality and aggression. We cannot be neutral in this conflict. Neutrality is not a worldview, neutrality is indifference. Indifference to violence and injustice. We will feel the consequences of indifference only when we are in trouble ourselves and are left to wonder why no is rushing to help us.
We have many other important decisions to make. One of them is the question of how we ensure our energy security. Whichever path we choose, wind energy or nuclear power, two things are clear.
First, there is an industrial revolution taking place all over the world – the green transition – right now. We know from history that the first industrial revolution led to the so-called Luddite movement, in which workers broke machines and killed factory owners who introduced steam-powered looms in their factories. The green transition is also being opposed, mainly politically, by those who do not believe and do not understand that progress cannot be stopped. They do not care about the health of our planet. What they have missed is that every major paradigm shift in society, economy, and technology always brings with it unprecedented new opportunities. It also means risks, but in this situation, it is necessary to focus on these new opportunities. These opportunities have a lot of potential for those who are the first to seize them, not those who are fighting the change.
The big do not eat the small neither in nature nor in economics. Instead, the fast eat the slow. Therefore, Estonia, despite its small size, has great potential to be on the winning side in this ongoing industrial revolution. We are small, but we have repeatedly shown that we can be fast. This has brought us great success in the past and I am sure that if we act wisely, the green transition will also become a hallmark of our success.
The second fact that is clear and that we have to accept is that investments in energy, as well as in other areas, bring about changes in the environment around us. In recent years, we have been so successful in building a well-being society that it sometimes makes us feel that we do not have to ensure this well-being ourselves, but that we can simply enjoy what has been created elsewhere here. Let them cut forest elsewhere, but give us furniture made of wood, let the chickens lay their eggs somewhere far away, but serve us omelettes, let them build nuclear power plants in Finland and Sweden, but offer us cheap electricity, and so on. Somehow, we have reached a point in our aspirations for well-being that some politicians seriously think that our allies should practice warfare elsewhere and they should only come to Estonia when it is actually too late. That is not realistic. I do not even know how we can overcome this mindset. Should we offer a motivation package to local governments regarding major investments in their territory? Maybe, we will discuss this. However, believing that only strawberries and flowers will grow in Estonia is naive. If we want to slide off the hill, we have to first pull the sled up the hill.
Dear Estonians!
Finally, I want to emphasise a couple of things on the anniversary of our beloved country. The last three years have been extremely complex, difficult, and tragic for the whole world, including us. I would love to promise you here and now that the situation in the world is about to get better right away. Unfortunately, I cannot. However, I can say that we, as a people, have coped incredibly well with these crazy conditions. We have been able to make significant changes that will ensure increased security and higher well-being in the future. The current government did what no previous one was able to – we decided to completely transit to Estonian-language education. Estonian-language education and living in a common information space is one of the most important security guarantees for us. What a lovely beautiful gift for the Republic of Estonia for our 105th birthday, is it not?
I want to end my speech by thanking all Estonians – I truly admire everything you have done. I would like to thank all the doctors and medical professionals who carried a huge burden on their shoulders during the pandemic. I would like to thank all the teachers, students, and parents who did their best in these difficult circumstances to ensure our children still had access to education. I would also like to thank all the police officers, border guards, and military personnel who have worked hard to ensure both our internal and external security. I would like to thank every last person who have helped war refugees and made it their mission to support Ukraine in its fight for all our freedom.
I am grateful, proud, and very happy to have been the prime minister of our country and all of you. Together, we can overcome even the biggest challenges. We will not surrender; we will not give up. Never.
The poet Gustav Suits turned to the people on the first anniversary of the Republic of Estonia on 24 February 1919 and said,
“Raise the flag”.
Let us do exactly that – let us raise our flags and celebrate the anniversary of Estonia, a country so small yet so big! Thank you, the Estonian people, and congratulations to us all! Long live Estonia!
