News from Berlin - Estonia’s foreign minister Urmas Paet invited his two Baltic neighbours and Germany’s Frank-Walter Steinmeier to the yearly “3+1 Consultation” between the Baltic states and Germany. The talks took place on the 16th and 17th of June in Talinn. It has been 20 years since the talks were established and Steinmeier praised the fantastic development the baltic states have made in the past two decades. He also mentioned that he is happy about the strong relationship the four states have built.

Political, bilateral, and european issues as well as the international agenda are being discussed between the four European states at these meetings, and this year the focus was on Ukraine. Steinmeier guaranteed the Baltic states that Germany and the other EU members are taking the Ukraine crisis seriously and that the EU and NATO will stand together to protect European peace. He emphasised that it was important for him to have this meeting before the upcoming Foreign Minister meeting of the two organisations, to show the Baltic states how important their relationship to Germany, the EU and NATO is.

Indeed it would be a shame if the Ukraine crisis had a negative impact on the Baltic states development and relationship with the rest of Europe. It is fantastic that in only 20 years the Baltic states have developed into functioning market economies and democracies. They have been resilient during the economic crisis and are, in Steinmeier’s opinion, ready to join the Euro in 2015. No one would have dreamed in 1994, he said, that in just two decades the Baltic states would use the same currency as Germany.  

News from Berlin – Berlin Global