Estonia’s prime minister says he has held talks with US Vice President Mike Pence over the possible deployment by Washington of the Patriot missile system to the Baltic state amid rising tensions between NATO states and Russia.
Following a Sunday meeting with Pence in the Estonian capital, Tallinn, Juri Ratas said Washington is considering deploying Patriot surface-to-air missiles in Estonia.
“We spoke about it today, but we didn’t talk about a date or time,” the premier told state broadcaster ERR.
“We talked about … [Russian] military maneuvers near the Estonian border… and how Estonia, the United States and NATO should monitor them,” Ratas added.
For his part, Pence reiterated US support for its East European and Baltic allies.
“Our allies in Eastern Europe can be confident that the United States of America stands with them,” he said.
Estonia was the first destination in Pence’s European tour, which will also take him to Georgia and Montenegro.