Spring Storm military exercise to focus on Central Estonia this year
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Friday
6. March
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Eestis on koroonaviirus tuvastatud juba 10 inimesel
(Delfi | Postimees)
“Terviseameti labor tuvastas täna varahommikul viiel 29. veebruaril Itaaliast Bergamo-Riia lennuga Itaaliast naasnud tallinlasel nakatumise koroonaviirusesse, kõik nakatunud viibivad hetkel kodusel ravil. Kokku on Eestis koroonaviirusesse nakatunud 10 inimest, kõik juhud on olnud sissetoodud.”
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Estonia prepared to reinstate border control: migration crisis
(Baltic Times)
“According to Estonian Minister of the Interior Mart Helme, migratory flows from Turkey and the increasingly spreading novel coronavirus pose a threat to people's health and safety, and Estonia is prepared to establish full border control on its external borders.”
Refugees Caught in the Middle of Turkey-EU Standoff
(Spiegel | Christian Science Monitor)
“Five years on, the European Union is still stuck on how to process asylum-seekers. Violence in Syria is sending a new large wave of migrants flowing towards Turkey, which has opened its border with Greece. Migrants are caught in the middle.”
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Spring Storm military exercise to focus on Central Estonia this year
(ERR)
“This year's Spring Storm will take place from April 21 through May 22 … the focus of the exercise will be on Central Estonia's Rapla County and Türi, Põhja-Pärnumaa, Põhja-Sakala and Viljandi Municipalities. Western Estonia and the western islands will be involved as well. The active portion of the exercise will take place in the aforementioned areas from may 8-15. Spring Storm will then culminate in a live-fire shooting exercise at the Estonian Defense Forces' (EDF) Central Training Ground from May 16-22.”
The EU’s White Paper on Artificial Intelligence
(Lawfare)
“Initial press reports about the white paper focused on how the commission had stepped back from a proposal in its initial draft for a three- to five-year moratorium on facial recognition technology. But the proposed framework is much more than that: It represents a sensible and thoughtful basis to guide the EU’s consideration of legislation to help direct the development of AI applications, and an important contribution to similar debates going on around the world.”
The Report in Estonian
ExxonMobil attempted to influence the European Green Deal
(InfluenceMap)
“Notes from the November 21st, 2019 meeting (obtained by InfluenceMap via a Freedom of Information request from the Commission) show ExxonMobil representatives pushed for the EU Commission to change its approach to climate regulation in the transport sector, including removing the EU’s strict CO2 vehicle tailpipe standards, in what appears to have been an effort to stall a push towards electric vehicles.”
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Thursday
5. March
__________
Kagueestlased tahavad valitsuselt lihtsustatud idapiiri ületust
(ERR)
“Kagu-Eestis elab tuhandeid inimesi, kelle omaste hauad asuvad teiselpool piiri Venemaal. Kuivõrd Venemaa ei väljasta neile mitmekordseid tasuta viisasid, soovivad Põlva ja Võru maakonna elanikud, et Eesti sõlmiks idanaabriga piiriäärsete elanike liikumise lihtsustamise lepingu.”
BBC on teinud loo Setomaast, millest 2/3 jäi Venemaale
(Lõunaeestlane)
“BBC poolt intervjueeritud seto naine Õie Sarv ütleb, et veetis lapsepõlves palju aega Vene poole peal, nüüd oleks nagu juured läbi lõigatud. Praegu on setodel piiriületus muutunud keeruliseks, mistõttu inimesed kannatavad.
Vahepeal oli ELi ja Venemaa vahelise kokkuleppega viisat lihtne, saada, aga alates 2018. aastast on Venemaa hakanud viisade väljastamisest keelduma. Suhted Eesti ja Venemaa vahel on jahenenud ja see mõjutab eelkõige setosid, kelle maa ja rahvas on jagatud kahe riigi vahel.”
Setomaa: The Estonia-Russia border tearing apart an ancient people
(BBC)
“Setos have a unique culture with their own language and traditions. Seto Leelo, a type of polyphonic singing specific to the region, is listed as a form of Intangible Cultural Heritage by Unesco. Seto ancestral territory covers an area of around 17,000 sq km (6,550 sq m), which nowadays is split between south-eastern Estonia and Russia's Pskov Oblast (region). At least two-thirds of the land is on the Russian side, along with the historical capital of Petseri.”
—
“In the 1990s, crossing the border remained straightforward. Estonian and Russian municipalities drew up lists of people living in the region, who could then move freely. … "[It] worked really well until the beginning of 2018. Then the Russian consulate began asking for extra documentary proof, including references from "cultural group" leaders and evidence of the groups' official registration … Russian authorities also began rejecting applications, even when all the requested documentation was provided.”
Kaljulaid Valges Majas
(ERR)
“President Kersti Kaljulaidil oli USA visiidi kolmandal päeval mitu kohtumist Valges Majas, kus teiste seas vestles ta president Trumpi vanemnõunik Jared Kushneri, president Trumpi riikliku julgeolekunõuniku Robert O'Brieni ja nõunik Ivanka Trumpiga.”
Baltics and Poland give "unequivocal support" to EU hopes of North Macedonia and Albania
(Latvian Broadcasting)
“As representatives of countries who have joined themselves the European Union 16 years ago, we share the common belief that the EU enlargement policy contributes to the stability, security and prosperity both in the Western Balkan region and Europe as a whole. The European integration of the Western Balkan countries should thus remain a strategic political objective for the EU.”
Klimaatilist talve jagus vaid neljaks päevaks
(Novaator)
“Kuigi selleaastane talv oli normist 2,5 °C võrra soojem, ei püstitatud rekordit ka selles vallas. Veel soojem oli 1961/1962. aasta talv.
Küll võib raamatu "Eesti kliima minevikus ja tänapäeval" öelda, et vaatlusperioodi jooksul on nihkunud eeltalvede algus kahe nädala võrra hilisemaks. Sama saab öelda päristalvede kohta. Suure muutlikkuse tõttu pole viimased muutused samas kaugeltki usaldusväärsed. Tervikuna on päristalve pikkus lühenenud olulisel määral, enamikes vaatlusjaamades 26 päeva jagu.”
How climate change is turning Europeans into migrants
(Euronews)
“Environmental migrants are persons or groups of persons who, predominantly for reasons of sudden or progressive change in the environment that adversely affects their lives or living conditions, are obliged to leave their habitual homes, or choose to do so, either temporarily or permanently, and who move either within their country or abroad.”
This winter in Europe was hottest on record by far
(The Guardian)
“The EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) data dates back to 1855. It said the average temperature for December, January and February was 1.4C above the previous winter record, which was set in 2015-16.”
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“In Helsinki, Finland, the average temperature for January and February was more than 6C higher than the 1981-2010 average.”
Eesti metsapoliitika vajab suunamuutust
(Päästame Eesti Metsad MTÜ)
“21. märtsil kell 12 tuleb Tallinnas Vabaduse väljakul ühismeeleavaldus “Päästame Eesti metsad!”, mille eesmärgiks on nõuda senise metsapoliitika muutmist, edastasid meeleavalduse korraldajad eesotsas loodusgiidi Liina Steinbergiga.”
Baltics among freest countries in Central Europe
(LRT)
“Authoritarianism and illiberal populism remaining key challenges to overcome in Europe and Eurasia.”
After 80 Years, The 'Katyn Lie' Lives On In Russia
(RFERL)
“In November 2010, the Russian State Duma took a big step toward healing a decades-old rift with Poland by officially accepting Soviet responsibility for the Katyn massacre -- the mass killing of some 22,000 Polish military officers, religious figures, and intelligentsia in 1940.”
—
“But fast forward nearly a decade … what is widely known as the "Katyn lie" lives on as online sleuths embrace and embellish the old Soviet argument denying any part in the massacre, and fringe politicians and media figures take a decidedly unapologetic stance on the massacre, even if they accept that Stalin ordered it.”
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Wednesday
4. March
__________
'I photographed 35 women, 10 are still alive': tragedy of Kihnu Island
by Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett, The Guardian
“Photographer Anne Helene Gjelstad’s portraits of Kihnu are a lament for a dying way of life.”
Interview: Kristina Kallas
(ERR)
[Kallas is chairman of non-parliamentary party Estonia 200.]
The “time is now or never” for Central Europe to grasp Three Seas opportunity, says Kaljulaid
(Atlantic Council)
“The Three Seas Investment Fund has been now been backed by an offer from the United States to invest up to $1 billion into the Initiative and the next Three Seas Summit will take place in Estonia’s capital, Tallinn in June. Kaljulaid argued that “everybody understands that the train has been built and is ready to leave the station.” Should governments in the region continue to delay paying into the Fund, they will risk missing out on potential projects and private investment, Kaljulaid warned at an Atlantic Council event on March 4. “If you are late, I am sorry but the cake [will] be eaten.”
Europe’s Defense Debate Is All About America
(War on the Rocks)
“Three years into the administration of President Donald Trump, and with a good chance that Trump might be reelected in 2020, most Europeans understand very well that the transatlantic relationship is in a bad state. “Westlessness,” a sense of loss of purpose for the West, was the main theme of this year’s Munich Security Conference. Europeans are also increasingly aware that the rise of China will have a long-term impact on Euro-Atlantic security relations. … Yet openly saying that Europeans must stop relying almost exclusively on the United States for their defense remains something of a taboo. …”
__________
Tuesday
3. March
__________
Estonia sentences Russian citizen for ramming a car through the gates of a border check point in Narva
(BNN)
“The man would serve his (three month) sentence in Estonia and has expressed a wish to not return to Russia after the prison term.”
Goodbye beaches
(Voxeurop)
“Almost half of the world’s sandy beaches will be close to extinction by 2100 due to climate-driven coastal flooding and human interference, according to a new study by the Joint Research Center (JRC) of the European Commission.”
Book Review: Selling Your Soul to the Kremlin
(Foreign Policy)
“Like most journalists who have lived in Russia while reporting on it, Joshua Yaffa focuses on the domestic situation in his new book, Between Two Fires. But he does not ignore foreign policy, because Russian internal affairs help to condition the options favored by the Kremlin in international relations. And it is difficult not to discern a parallel between the Kremlin’s belligerence abroad and its illiberal activities on the home front.”
—
“Indeed, the Putin administration savagely represses Russians who speak or act against it. The electoral system has been further enfeebled since Boris Yeltsin stepped down from the presidency at the end of 1999. Opposition politicians and investigative reporters have been persecuted, sometimes even assassinated. Parties gain the legal registration to contest national elections only if they represent no serious threat to the ruling elite. The main TV stations dutifully repeat the news as dictated by the Kremlin.”
—
“The Russian people, as Yaffa points out, have grown habituated to this contemporary reality.”
The Day After Putin
(Foreign Affairs)
“We focus too much on Putin himself, on his personality, his wealth, his approval ratings, his secret schemes. And we pay too little attention to the institutions that today define the Russian state. Putin’s single biggest achievement in two decades in power—his true legacy—has been to reempower the state bureaucracy. He has paid salaries on time, increased budgets, let the government control a larger share of the national economy, and looked the other way as officials abused their power. No part of this bureaucratic apparatus matters more than the national security establishment—the vast, hydra-headed complex of military, intelligence, and law enforcement ministries. These institutions may well determine not only who becomes the next president of Russia but what Russian politics will look like after Putin.”
The World Through Moscow’s Eyes: A Classic Russian Perspective
(Carnegie Moscow)
“Those looking at Russia’s foreign relations would soon discover that the country is essentially a loner. It is not part of any international large family, whether Europe, the Atlantic community or the West. Asians do not recognize Russia as Asian, either. Its identity is distinct and unique. At bottom, it is ethnically mainly Eastern Slavic, but culturally most profoundly affected by Christian orthodoxy. For centuries after the fall of Constantinople, Russia was the only independent Eastern Orthodox nation in the world, standing between the Catholic and Muslim-dominated worlds.”
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