Author: Helen Wright

Latvia's newly won non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is beneficial for the Nordic-Baltic region, but expectations should be kept in check, said Kristi Raik, director of the International Center for Defense and Security (ICDS) think tank in Tallinn.

Estonia's largest military exercise, "Hedgehog" ("Siil") kicked off on Monday, May 5. ERR News will share some of the Estonian Defense Forces' photos from the exercise over the coming month.

On Monday, Exercise Hedgehog 25 kicked off across Estonia with 16,000 Estonian and allied forces. But why is Estonia's biggest military exercise named after one of the smallest animals?

Last week, the Riigikogu voted to strip almost all foreign citizens living in Estonia of their voting rights in local elections. ERR News spoke to several about how they view the decision.

The new Reform and Eesti 200 coalition has now taken office with new ministers swearing the oath of office on Tuesday. Some are familiar, but there are several new faces too. ERR News has put together a short overview.

Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania "successfully" synchronized with the Continental European electricity grid on Sunday afternoon, President of Lithuania Gitanas Nauseda said. "The period of political pressure and blackmail is finally over," he added.

Syrians who sought international protection in Estonia cannot be forced to return to Syria and any choice must be made independently and voluntarily, said Eero Janson, head of the Estonian Refugee Council. Last month, the foreign minister said the policy would not be extended after the fall of the Assad regime, but according to the Ministry of the Interior, no changes are planned.

Authors of a new report about the future of the Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS) cooperation format say "out of the box" thinking is needed as the organization has gradually lost its purpose over the last 20 years.

While Norway and Estonia may seem far apart, the two countries share many similarities when it comes to defense and their eastern neighbor. In short, what happens in the Baltic effects the Arctic, and vice versa. ERR News spoke with Norwegian Ambassador Marius Dirdal about the security situation in the High North, Russia and Norway's activity in the Baltics.

Estonia's irregular border crossings dropped by 43 percent last year, data from the Police and Border Guard Board (PPA) show. The figures are in line with the European Union-wide trend but are significantly lower than in countries closer to home.