Nordic and Baltic Foreign Ministers met in Tallinn on Friday where they issued a stern statement demanding the release of Estonian officer Eston Kohver from Russian captivity. Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Paet, Finnish Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja, Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt, Danish Foreign Minister Martin Lidegaard, Iceland’s Foreign Minister Gunnar Bragi Sveinsson, Norway’s Deputy Foreign Minister Hans Brattskar, Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkēvičs and Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevičius expressed “deep concern over the incident that took place on September 5, when on-duty Estonian policeman Eston Kohver was abducted by Russian security services on Estonian territory.”
“Eston Kohver was taken by force to Russia and is being held in custody in Moscow,” the foreign ministers of Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Denmark, Latvia, and Lithuania expressed in their joint statement.
“We call on Russia to immediately release Eston Kohver and ensure his safe return to Estonia,” they emphasized.
The ministers, meeting over a two day period in Tallinn, will discuss the regional and European security situation and latest developments in Ukraine. They will also discuss energy issues from a regional perspective, as well as the situation in Syria and Iraq. The future of Nordic and Baltic cooperation will also be on the agenda
