How great a success do you consider the Gaza peace agreement to be?

Everything depends on its implementation. Of course, it is very welcome that this first phase has, so to speak, been agreed upon. Yesterday, we met in Paris to discuss how to move this plan forward so that there can also be lasting peace in the Middle East. That is in everyone's interest.

Why haven't the Americans been as successful with the Ukraine peace agreement?

It's hard to say. The situation is somewhat different. But we will continue our work. We see that the only way to influence Russia is through pressure and decisive action. That's why we have prepared the 19th package of sanctions — to deprive them of the means to finance the war and thereby bring the war to an end.

How much do you think the Middle East has drawn attention away from Ukraine?

In terms of attention, these are fairly equal-sized conflicts. There are, in fact, other wars still going on in the world that receive no attention at all — take what's happening in Sudan, for example.

But it's clear that when major events unfold in the Middle East, there's less room for other topics. Now that the first phase has been agreed upon, attention will certainly shift back more toward Ukraine.

At the same time, it seems that the European Union has been somewhat sidelined in major discussions — whether about the Middle East or Ukraine. Why have we been left on the sidelines?

We certainly haven't been sidelined. We're probably just not as good at marketing ourselves as the Americans are. The truth is, we're doing this work every single day. We're in contact with both sides and we have very concrete points we're following through on — it's really a collective effort. Just yesterday, together with the Arab states, we discussed who is doing what and how each of us can contribute.

In recent weeks, a few articles have suggested that your assertive diplomacy bothers the Americans or that they simply don't like it. Is that the reason you haven't had major diplomatic meetings with them?

In recent weeks, there have also been plenty of very positive articles about my work. It all depends on perspective. Naturally, our relations with the Americans are very good and we work with them on a daily basis — whether it concerns the Middle East or Ukraine.

But do you personally feel that your assertive approach is something that bothers the Americans?

It probably does bother some people, but these are times when we simply can't act any other way. We can't just sit on our hands and watch things pass us by. What's happening now involves existential questions. International law is under attack and it must be defended — because if we don't defend it, small countries like Estonia will be in great danger.

And as former Belgian Prime Minister Paul-Henri Spaak once said, there are only two kinds of countries in the world: small ones and those that haven't yet realized they are small. So the functioning of international law is, in fact, in everyone's interest.

Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel recently accused the Baltic states and Poland of undermining diplomacy toward Russia. You were prime minister at the time and it seems that criticism was also directed at you. What would you say to Angela Merkel?

You know, I just got off a plane and finished reading a book that our ambassador to the United Nations, Rein Tammsaar, gave me. It's about U Thant — the Burmese diplomat who was the UN's third secretary-general and the first from Asia — and it included a very interesting passage about how both African and Asian countries perceive this Western attitude that the West is always right. And I think that kind of mindset is perhaps where this [Merkel's opinion] also comes from.

The day before yesterday, I met with the president of Ethiopia and we actually talked about this very same issue. I said, look, we were once on the other side of the Iron Curtain, but from reading that book, I can fully understand how you feel. The attitude that the West always knows better — that applies to us as well.

But times have changed and the world has changed. Countries are perhaps more equal now. Everyone plays their own role and who was right or wrong — that only becomes clear later.

So, in your view, the Baltic states haven't undermined diplomacy in any way? You don't see us as bearing any responsibility for Russia's invasion of Ukraine?

The only party responsible for the invasion of Ukraine is Russia. Russia made the decision to attack another sovereign nation. As for their so-called reasons — there are no justifications. International law gives no one the right to use force against another country. So the only one to blame is Russia.

And if you look at history, Russia has attacked many countries without any real reason, without any threat to its own security — simply to expand its empire. We are most certainly on the right side of history.

In Merkel's case, do you see that as a kind of hindsight self-justification?

I can't really say. I haven't read the interview myself or how she explained her reasoning. What's clear is that she did her job with the intention of doing her best — both for the world and for Germany.

Unfortunately, you have to make decisions in the moment, in that specific context and with the background and experience you bring with you. And who was right or wrong — we can only see that in hindsight. She truly meant to do her best and invested a great deal of energy into it.

Finally, what are our next steps on Ukraine to bring this war to an end?

As I said, we are working on the 19th sanctions package, which will be fairly strong — intended to deny Russia the means to finance the war. We are cooperating with international partners to send the message that Russia should be diplomatically and internationally isolated until it comes to the table and is willing to end the war.

Of course we are also supporting Ukraine with further military aid packages so it can defend itself. Naturally this is becoming increasingly difficult, but we must not — as the saying goes — throw in the towel.

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