The Bill on the Ratification of the Agreement between the Republic of Estonia and the Kingdom of Sweden on the Enforcement in Estonia of Swedish Sentences of Imprisonment (682 SE), initiated by the Government, will ratify the agreement under which Estonia is prepared to accept Swedish prisoners and enable the enforcement of their sentences in Estonia. The Agreement was signed in June in Stockholm, Sweden.

The Agreement sets out rights and obligations and regulates the enforcement of sentences, prison conditions, as well as the distribution of costs, and supervision. According to the explanatory memorandum of the Bill, the number of prisoners in Estonia is steadily decreasing, while the costs of maintaining prisons remain high. Leasing out prison places will enable Tartu Prison to remain in operation, ensure that jobs in the region are preserved and create new jobs, and bring at least 30 million euros in additional revenue to the state budget. According to the explanatory memorandum, the agreement offers Sweden a solution to the temporary overcrowding of its prison system.

According to the Agreement, Estonia will only accept prisoners who meet certain criteria, which means that security risks as well as possible preventive and mitigation measures have been determined in cooperation between the Police and Border Guard Board, the Security Police Board, and the Ministry of the Interior. The Agreement provides that foreign prisoners will be sent back to Sweden not later than one month before the end of their sentence.

According to the explanatory memorandum, it is planned to bring the first foreign prisoners to Tartu Prison in the second half of 2026. The arrival of prisoners is planned to take place in stages, so that Tartu Prison will have time to make the necessary preparations. In total, the agreement allows to bring up to 600 prisoners from Sweden to Estonia.

According to the Bill, the Agreement will enter into force on the 30th day after both Estonia and Sweden have fulfilled the necessary national requirements and notified each other in writing.

Minister of Justice and Digital Affairs Liisa Pakosta, Deputy Secretary General on Prison Service at the Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs Rait Kuuse and Adviser of the Penal Law and Procedure Division of the Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs Martin Ziehr gave an overview of the Bill at the sitting of the Legal Affairs Committee.

The Committee decided to make a proposal to the Board of the Riigikogu to include the Bill on the agenda for the sitting of 4 November and conclude the first reading of the Bill. To ratify the Agreement , the Bill also has to pass the second reading.

Riigikogu Press Service
Karin Kangro
+372 631 6356, +372 520 0323
karin.kangro@riigikogu.ee
Questions: press@riigikogu.ee

Link uudisele: The Legal Affairs Committee sent the Bill on the Estonian-Swedish prison rental agreement to the first reading

Member of the delegation Hannes Hanso stated that Georgia wanted to become a member of NATO and continued with carrying out the necessary reforms. He added that Estonia supported Georgia’s aspirations.

Hanso said that the level of the defence spending of member states was spoken of at every meeting of the Alliance. He pointed out that only five member states – USA, Greece, United Kingdom, Estonia and Poland – contributed two percent of GDP to defence spending, and added that although others did not meet that requirement yet, efforts were made to achieve the target. “A discussion has started in Estonia whether the two percent level is sufficient in today’s changed security situation, and maybe it should be increased,” Hanso said, and remarked that at present, Estonia is contributing 2.18 percent of GDP to national defence.

Georgia has the status of a NATO partner country, but meets the two percent requirement already now by contributing 2.2 percent of GDP to defence spending. During the meeting in Tbilisi, issues related to Georgia will be discussed in the committees of the NATO PA. The Economics and Security Committee will assess the economic reforms in Georgia; the Political Committee will discuss the foreign and security policy priorities of Georgia. Georgia’s strategies towards occupied regions, development of democracy and rule of law, and advancing stability in the Black Sea region will be spoken about in the Committee on the Civil Dimension of Security.  

Ballistic missile defence, cooperation between NATO and the European Union, and possibilities for improving the defence industries of NATO member states will also be discussed in Tbilisi. Other topics that will be spoken about include the future of European defence research and development, the role of NATO partnership in changed security environment, tackling the challenges from the South, transatlantic relations, the social media revolution and weaponisation, and the impact of climate change on food and water security.

The Internet of things, which has to be taken into account more and more when planning cyber security activities, will also be in focus. There will be separate reports on Russia, Russian military modernisation in the Black Sea region, the humanitarian aspects of the war in Syria and Iraq, and social media.

President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly Paolo Alli, President of Georgia Giorgi Margvelashvili, Prime Minister of Georgia Giorgi Kvirikashvili, Chairman of the Parliament of Georgia Irakli Kobakhidze and Deputy Secretary General of NATO Rose Gottemoeller will speak at the Plenary Sitting of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly on Monday.

Besides Marko Mihkelson and Hannes Hanso, the Estonian delegation also includes Oudekki Loone and Ants Laaneots.

Riigikogu Press Service
Epp-Mare Kukemelk
+372 631 6356, +372 51 53 903
epp-mare.kukemelk@riigikogu.ee 
Questions: press@riigikogu.ee

Link uudisele: The Riigikogu delegation attends the NATO PA Spring Session in Georgia

Link uudisele: The Legal Affairs Committee elected Chairman and Deputy Chairman