HELSINKI (AP) — Estonia’s Prime Minister Kaja Kallas has stepped down as the leader of the Baltic country to become the foreign policy chief of the European Union later this year.
Kallas, Estonia’s first female prime minister, handed in her formal resignation to President Alar Karis during a brief meeting at the Presidential Palace in the capital, Tallinn, on Monday.
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HELSINKI (AP) — Estonia’s Prime Minister Kaja Kallas has stepped down as the leader of the Baltic country to become the foreign policy chief of the European Union later this year.
Estonia's Prime Minister Kaja Kallas smiles during her arrival at the NATO summit in Washington, Wednesday, July 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Estonia's Prime Minister Kaja Kallas speaking to members of the media at the NATO summit in Washington, Wednesday, July 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Estonia's Prime Minister Kaja Kallas speaks during her arrival at the NATO summit in Washington, Thursday, July 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Estonia's Prime Minister Kaja Kallas prepares to speak during her arrival at the NATO summit in Washington, Thursday, July 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Estonia's Prime Minister Kaja Kallas speaks during her arrival at the NATO summit in Washington, Thursday, July 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Estonia under Kallas, 47, has been one of Europe’s most vocal backers of Ukraine following the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022. She replaces Josep Borrell of Spain, who has served as the EU foreign policy chief since 2019.
Summing up Kallas’ 3 1/2 years at the helm of the nation of 1.3 million, Karis said in a statement that “it has been a time full of crises, the milestones (such as) the coronavirus, the economic recession and the war in Europe, when Russia destroyed our previous security picture with its aggression in Ukraine”.
The prime minister’s move automatically triggered the resignation of Kallas’ three-party coalition Cabinet, made up of her center-right Reform Party, the Social Democratic Party and the liberal Estonia 200 party. It will continue as a caretaker government until the new Cabinet is sworn in, most likely in early August.
In the last meeting of the outgoing Cabinet on Monday, Kallas underscored her government’s efforts to boost the security of Estonia, a NATO member that neighbors Russia.
“We have invested more in national defense than ever before and increased the annual defense budget to 1.4 billion euros (about $1.5 billion), which is 3% of GDP,” Kallas said, adding that in the past two years, the state defense budget has increased by nearly 70%. “These decisions help to ensure that Estonia is firmly protected and a safe place to live.”
The Reform Party announced on June 29 that it chose party veteran and Climate Minister Kristen Michal as the prime minister candidate to replace Kallas who represented Estonia at a NATO summit in Washington last week. Under Kallas' leadership, Reform scored an overwhelming victory in the 2023 general election and holds a mandate to the prime minister post.
The Cabinet's composition is likely to remain the same but Michal, who is set to succeed Kallas also as the Reform Party's chair, is currently holding talks with both the Social Democrats and the Estonia 200 to revise the current 4-year government program the three parties had originally agreed last year.
Michal’s nomination for Estonia's top job will have to be approved by Karis and the 101-seat parliament, or Riigikogu, where the coalition holds a comfortable majority. He has been serving as the minister for climate affairs since April last year. The 49-year-old former economics and justice minister has been active in the Reform Party, Estonia’s key political establishment, since the late 1990s.
Michal is known for a long and acclaimed political career focused on Estonia’s internal affairs but lacks international experience — almost the complete opposite of Kallas who has excelled in international arenas but was clearly out of her comfort zone when it came to domestic politics, leading to a major dip in her popularity among Estonians over the past year.
Estonia's Prime Minister Kaja Kallas smiles during her arrival at the NATO summit in Washington, Wednesday, July 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Estonia's Prime Minister Kaja Kallas smiles during her arrival at the NATO summit in Washington, Wednesday, July 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Estonia's Prime Minister Kaja Kallas speaking to members of the media at the NATO summit in Washington, Wednesday, July 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Estonia's Prime Minister Kaja Kallas speaks during her arrival at the NATO summit in Washington, Thursday, July 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Estonia's Prime Minister Kaja Kallas prepares to speak during her arrival at the NATO summit in Washington, Thursday, July 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Estonia's Prime Minister Kaja Kallas speaks during her arrival at the NATO summit in Washington, Thursday, July 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
PARIS (AP) — Thousands of protesters took to the streets across France on Saturday, responding to a call from a far-left party leader who criticized as a “power grab” the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier.
The protests directly challenged President Emmanuel Macron’s decision to bypass a prime minister from the far-left bloc following a deeply dividing —and divided — legislative election result in July. Authorities did not record a huge turnout nationwide.
The left, particularly the France Unbowed party, views Barnier’s conservative background as rejecting the electorate’s will, further intensifying the EU’s second economy’s already charged political atmosphere. Saturday's demonstrators denounced Barnier’s appointment as denying democracy, echoing France Unbowed leader Jean-Luc Melenchon’s fiery rhetoric from recent days.
In Paris, protesters gathered at Place de la Bastille and tensions ran high as police prepared for potential clashes. Some carried placards reading “Where is my vote?”
At the head of the Parisian procession, Melenchon spoke passionately, declaring that “the French people are in rebellion. They have entered into revolution.”
“There will be no pause, no truce. I call you to a long-term battle,” he added.
In the southwestern city of Montauban, a rally speaker told the crowd that “the people have been ignored.” Other protests took place is some 150 locations nationwide.
While Barnier was meeting with healthcare workers at Paris’ Necker Hospital for his first official visit as prime minister, opponents say the unrest in the streets is shaping his government’s future.
Barnier, who is working to assemble his Cabinet, expressed a commitment to listening to public concerns, particularly about France’s public services.
Jordan Bardella, leader of the far-right National Rally (RN), warned that Barnier was “under surveillance” by his party as well. Bardella, speaking at the Chalons-en-Champagne fair, called for the prime minister to include his party's priorities in his agenda, particularly regarding national security and immigration.
Barnier, 73, is the oldest of the 26 prime ministers that have served modern France’s Fifth Republic. He replaces the youngest, Gabriel Attal, who was 34 when he was appointed just eight months ago.
Attal was forced to resign after Macron’s centrist government performed poorly in the July snap legislative elections. Macron called the election in the hopes of securing a clear mandate, but it instead produced a hung parliament, leaving the president without a legislative majority and plunging his administration into turmoil.
Attal was also France’s first openly gay prime minister. French media and some of Macron’s opponents, who immediately criticized Barnier’s appointment, quickly dug up that, when serving in parliament in 1981, the new prime minister had been among 155 lawmakers who voted against a law that decriminalized homosexuality.
Though Barnier brings five decades of political experience, his appointment offers no guarantee of resolving the crisis. His challenge is immense: He must form a government that can navigate a fractured National Assembly, where the political spectrum is deeply divided between the far left, far right, and Macron’s weakened centrist bloc. The outcome of the snap poll, far from providing clarity, has only served to destabilize both the country and Macron’s grip on power.
The president’s decision to turn to Barnier, a seasoned political operator with deep ties to the European Union, is seen as an attempt to bring stability to French politics. And Barnier, who gained prominence as the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, has faced daunting tasks before.
Critics say Macron, elected on the promise of a break from the old political order, now finds himself battling the instability he once promised to overcome.
A demonstrator holds a placard which reads 'Emmanuel it's time to abdicate' during a protest, responding to a call from the far-left party who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier, in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
A demonstrator holds a poster which reads 'Macron treason resignation' during a protest, responding to a call from the far-left party who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier, in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
Demonstrators participate in a protest, responding to a call from the far-left party who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier, in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
A demonstrator holds a poster featuring French President Emmanuel Macron during a protest, responding to a call from the far-left party who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier, in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
Demonstrators, one displaying French flag, gather under the statue of Marianne, a symbol of the French Republic, during a protest demonstration responding to a call from the far-left party leader who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a new prime minister, Michel Barnier, in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
A demonstrator holds a poster which reads 'Macron treason resignation' during a protest, responding to a call from the far-left party who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier, in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
Demonstrators shout slogans during a protest, responding to a call from the far-left party who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier, in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
A demonstrator holds a poster which reads 'the monarchs were beheaded' during a protest, responding to a call from the far-left party who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier, in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
A demonstrator, on right, holds a placard which reads 'don't touch my democracy' during a protest, responding to a call from the far-left party who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier, in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
Demonstrators display a banner which reads 'democracy against austerity' during a protest, responding to a call from the far-left party who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier, in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
Demonstrators participate a protest, responding to a call from the far-left party who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier, in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
Demonstrators shout slogans during a protest, responding to a call from the far-left party who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier, in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
France Unbowed leader Jean-Luc Melenchon, center, who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier, participates in a protest demonstration in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
France Unbowed leader Jean-Luc Melenchon, center, who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier, gestures as he participates in a protest demonstration in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
People, some carrying placards, participate in a protest demonstration responding to a call from the far-left party who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier, in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
France Unbowed leader Jean-Luc Melenchon, center, who criticized as a power grab the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier, gestures as he participates in a protest demonstration in Paris, France, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
