cross-posted from: https://scribe.disroot.org/post/12187588

Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal said on Friday, Oct. 30, that he would not soften his criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin after a report that Pentagon officials had urged Baltic allies to tone down their rhetoric about Russia.

Speaking to Delfi, Michal said Estonia would maintain its position and continue speaking openly about the Russian threat.

“I won’t hold back. Putin is a dictator who kills women and children,” he said.

Michal added that Putin would continue doing so until he was forced to change course.

Appeasing dictators brings humiliation without preserving freedom, Michal argued. Estonia and its Baltic neighbors would continue warning about the threat posed by Russia, he said.

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Reuters reported that Pentagon officials had privately asked several NATO allies, including Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, to tone down their rhetoric about Russia.

Four people familiar with the discussions told Reuters the requests were made during bilateral meetings in recent weeks. Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby was among the officials involved.

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One source said Colby advised a Baltic official against “poking” Russia and cited descriptions of Moscow as cornered and increasingly desperate.

Michal had called Putin a rat in a corner in September, linking Russia’s difficulties in Ukraine to suspected sabotage in Europe. Reuters could not establish whether Colby was referring specifically to those remarks.

The sources described the conversations as cordial. The Pentagon declined to discuss private exchanges between allies, and NATO also declined to comment.

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