Estonia's Prime Minister Kaja Kallas visited Helsinki to attend an event hosted by the Finnish Bar Association. Image: John Palmén
"What I want to say is that, yes they [Russia] want to threaten, but the only thing we have to fear is fear itself," Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas said during a visit to Helsinki on Friday, reports YLE.
Kallas added that Estonia, unlike Finland, was under occupation by the Soviet Union for five decades.
"We have been dealing with Russian provocations for a long time. Russia has been threatening with things that it has already done," Kallas noted.
"They said they will bring Iskander missiles to Nato borders, but they are already there, and they have been there for years."
This is "how they [Russia] play", Kallas further added.
"We have been used to it, we have been able to counter this, and we are OK and so will you [Finland]," she said.
Kallas previously expressed Estonia's support for Finland applying to join Nato when Prime Minister Sanna Marin (SDP) visited Tallinn in March.
She noted that, in the case of Estonia, negotiations within the country about the possibility of applying to join Nato lasted five years, which was then followed by the ratification of Estonian membership by all member countries.
Finland's, and even Sweden's, accession process will be much quicker, she said.
"The attitude among Nato allies [towards Finland and Sweden] is very positive," Kallas said.
"Matter of months" for Estonia to ratify Finnish application
Any possible application by Finland to join Nato must be approved by all 30 current member states, and Kallas noted that democracy can take time.
"Estonia has its own parliamentary process," she said, adding that Estonian ratification of Finland's application will be a "matter of months".
"Finland's involvement would make Nato stronger," Kallas concluded. "At the same time, security in the entire region will increase."
Estonia's Prime Minister is visiting Helsinki to attend an event hosted by the Finnish Bar Association, and is not scheduled to meet with any members of the Finnish government on this trip, but will make an official visit at the beginning of June.
Estonian President Alar Karis will visit Helsinki next week to participate in the Tuglas Society's celebratory seminar.
