Kersti Kaljulaid

“Estonia is proud of the fact that the country today has a flourishing and happy Jewish life.”

“If we look decades ago, we know that NATO allies contributed a lot of equipment close to the border of the Soviet Union.”

“I don't know of any problems countries in Europe are facing - environment, infrastructure, markets, market development, the fifth freedom being digital freedom, border security, terrorism, migration - that can be better solved alone.”

“We want to be sure that both NATO's territory and NATO soldiers are well protected. We need to make sure that there is the air defense and the air support for these forces in case that is necessary.”

“The E.U. is a common platform where we come together and agree to do certain things. But the E.U. is never going to take over the responsibility which governments have for prosperity and security of their people.”

“There are high hopes of France and what they're trying to achieve there by liberalising the labour market and other reforms. You lose some, you gain some.”

“Our main concern will always be security.”

“We are past the stage in our relations that you come to Washington with an empty goody bag and then you go back with a bag filled with stuff.”

“It is interesting that cyberwarfare is developing into something conventional and attacking objects, infrastructure, and critical services.”

“From kindergarten, I knew that politics is something that you talk about only at home, because if you weren't quiet, your parents might be taken to prison. All Estonian families have these kind of stories.”

“Estonia maintains a two-language school system. I don't know many countries in the world that provide a system like ours. We are making sure that our Russian-speaking minority feels comfortable and involved in this country.”

“In Estonia, our greatest national treasure is our egalitarian educational system.”

“The problem is if Russia is organising exercises - and not being transparent about what exactly these exercises are about - it creates suspicions as to their objectives.”

“The U.S., together with trans-Atlantic allies, never recognized the occupation of the Baltic states by the Soviet Union. Moscow faced pressure or retaliation every time it tried to move toward official recognition, or at least acceptance, of its claim that the Baltic states were Soviet republics.”

“In 2008, when Russia attacked Georgia, Western countries took it as an isolated incident, but probably this was the start of the push against our underlying international security architecture. And this push then started a landslide which in 2014 resulted in Crimean occupation.”

“We've had Vice President Pence visiting Tallinn, where he met not only with me but also with my other Baltic colleagues - Lithuanian President Ms. Grybauskaite and Latvian President Mr. Vejonis. And, of course, Vice President Pence has been very clear that NATO acts as a whole. Attack against one is attack against all.”

“Sometimes I hear, particularly from Russia, that we simply hate Russia and don't like to co-operate, that we are hysterical about the risks. But this is totally untrue. We would greatly benefit economically if our neighbour was a democratic, developing country.”

“People everywhere in the world have Russian connections. There is nothing wrong with having Russian connections as long as you're transparent about it.”

“Small nations have no time for small goals - they have to think big in order to become contributors.”

“I must recall with gratitude those 178 Jewish women and men who participated in the Estonian War of Independence. Both of our nations know what it means to keep your identity and freedom even under the pressure of foreign powers, and we can be proud of their achievements.”