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Estonia stands with Israel on security issues, including opposing Russias role in supporting both Syrian President Bashar Assad and Iran's military presence there, its Foreign Minister Sven Mikser told The Jerusalem Post.

The role that the Russians play [in Syria] by way of trying to keep Assad in power and by the apparent collusion with the Iranians, yes, that is a shared concern, Mikser said.

He arrived Tuesday night for a two-day trip and met Wednesday with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. On Thursday the Israeli leader flew to Moscow to talk with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the importance of halting Iranian activities in Syria.

The small former Soviet bloc country that borders Russia has a population of only some 1.3 million people and a long history of resisting Russian expansionist drives.

We have seen the expansionist ambitions of the leadership in the Kremlin, said Mikser, including Russias recent activity in illegally annexing Crimea.

We can say with some confidence that they [Russia] will not shy away from using military force to achieve political aims, Mikser told The Jerusalem Post during a Wednesday interview in Jerusalem.

The Kremlin is doing this in Syria, where it is working to keep Assad in power and operating in some sort of symbiosis with the Iranians, Mikser said, adding that this is a legitimate concern for Israel.

Putin is not an irrational player. He is a cool and calculating player who sees the world very much in zero sum terms, Mikser said. He is in constant competition and standoff with the West in general and with the Americans in particular. Whenever he sees the lack of unity and resolve on behalf of the adversaries, [he knows] that is a weakness [that can] be exploited, Mikser said.

It is important to present [Putin] with a resolute and unified front and by doing that, he can be deterred. So it is important that we speak with a very unambiguous and unified voice, Mikser said.

The bigger the coalition or the community of democratic states that can speak with a unified voice, the better, Mikser added.

Addressing the common struggles Israel and Estonia share, Mikser went on to say that Israel has its own security interests and concerns, but there are things [concerns] we share, the way the Russians have dragged or facilitated the Iranian entry into the Syrian situation."

I can imagine that is very threatening to the Israeli security interests, he said.

It is in Israel and Estonias joint interest to put pressure on Russia to make them return to the internationally accepted behavior by way of not unduly interfering in the internal affairs of other countries, he concluded.

His country, is a member state of the European Union and in July, Estonia will take over the presidency of the EU Council, which is a rotating six-month position.

Estonia is a strong supporter of Israel in the EU and the United Nations, but when it comes to the Palestinian conflict, it has a no-tolerance policy toward Israeli settlement activity.

Its positions falls within the larger EU belief that settlement building is an obstacle to peace and to the achievement of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

We are definitely looking for ways to get to the two-state solution in such a way that does not compromise Israeli security on one hand, but would also allow the Palestinians to realize their national aspirations, Mikser said.

Speaking on behalf of both Estonia and the EU, he said, we do not think that the settlement activity should continue at all, in that sense it is impossible for me to say that [this] much is acceptable and not more.

Similarly, he said, Estonia opposes unilateral Palestinian steps to achieve statehood, holding that such recognition should come only as part of a final status agreement for a two-state solution.

We do not think that unilateral action by the Palestinians can bring about the realization of their national ambitions or be helpful in moving toward a sustainable settlement of the conflict, Mikser said.

The only way to get there is to engage in direct talks, he said. The international community can act as a facilitator that supports the parties in hammering out an agreement, he added.

Pre-conditions for talks are not helpful and both sides have to be prepared to make compromises, he said.

We are ready to work together with the Palestinians just as we are ready to work with the Israelis for the achievement of a two-state solution, he stated.

Resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as well as broader peace in the Middle East is in the best interest of Estonia and the EU, he said.

Without this, he said, it is very difficult if not impossible for Europe to be secure.

Stressing the importance of remaining proactive in the attempts to bring about a resolution to the conflict, Mikser concluded by saying that History has proven that if there are unresolved conflicts, even far away, they will eventually come to our doorstep."

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Estonian FM in Israel: 'We're concerned by Russia's collusion with Iran in Syria' - Jerusalem Post Israel News