@IlvesToomas

Toomas Hendrik Ilves From Estonia. Where Digital is Native. And come in at #2 in the world in internet freedom. @toomas_ilves@mastodon.social

Estonia
Joined May 2012
Oh hell, I guess there's nothing left to do but to move over to @ilvestoomas.bsky.social. It seems civilised there. Hope it lasts. Will be double posting for awhile weaning myself off this hellsite.
60
36
7
292
314,682
toomas hendrik ilves retweeted
In 27 years as a Foreign Service officer, I executed policies of presidents I voted for and presidents I did not vote for. That’s what a nonpartisan service does. This is outrageous.
SCOOP: The State Dept has started asking career diplomats up for promotion if they voted for Trump in 16, 20, 24. Federal law prohibits politically based hiring for career staff. State tells @washingtonsun it's screening for "fidelity" and execution of the president's vision👇
1
3
9
289
toomas hendrik ilves retweeted
When you praise a mass murderer as a 'humanitarian,' you become complicit in his crimes. You insult the memory of the victims of the destruction of Grozny, Aleppo, Mariupol. You gaslight the women raped in Bucha. You mock the families of stolen Ukrainian children. You show that you share the same nihilistic universe as the perpetrator of these atrocities.
Steve Witkoff to Putin: You talk so much about my president, President Trump, being a humanitarian. You are a humanitarian also, sir, and I salute that, I commend you, and I thank you again.
19
114
7
349
4,747
toomas hendrik ilves retweeted
Russia's suspected drone attacks are threatening Ukraine's grain exports. The EU wants to protect them, but sending warships may be a step too far. 🚢 After six attacks on ships in just 10 days, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has backed a naval mission in the Black Sea. The stakes go far beyond Ukraine. Kyiv is losing an estimated €60 million a day in exports, while disruptions to grain shipments threaten food supplies in countries that depend on them. In our article, we look at the military challenges, political calculations and wider consequences of the Black Sea crisis. What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments :) 🔗 Read more at euobserver.com 👉 euobserver.com/243857/eu-unl…
1
1
1
229
“Beyond depravity & obscenity” I joined @JuliaHB1 to discuss Steve Whitkoff describing Putin as a humanitarian while in Russia supposedly for peace talks I’m not often lost for words but on this occasion I borrowed the words of my friend @ShaunPinnerUA👇 youtu.be/eX_PO4WstMc?is=nkK4…
1
4
2
8
526
toomas hendrik ilves retweeted
This is our three minute video on why the Baltics matter. Expertly rejigged by my brilliant colleague at @securebaltics
🎬 When it comes to security, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania see things we don’t see. They understand things we don’t understand. And they do things we don’t do. 🌍 Europe doesn’t have a Baltic problem. It has Baltic solutions. #BeMoreBaltic
7
64
2
200
5,533
toomas hendrik ilves retweeted
Weidel: "Prolonging the war and shooting drones into the hinterland of Russia, destroying refineries, houses, and buildings near Moscow, is a huge provocation." Host: "It's defending itself." Weidel: "No, it's not." Host: "Every night, drones and ballistic missiles rain down on Ukraine..." Weidel: "This strategy is very risky, and we've been criticizing it. We want to end this war. It doesn't help if a country [Ukraine] launches drone attacks against a country [Russia] that has nuclear weapons. It doesn't make sense, it's very risky and very stupid. We need to end this, and we need to actually put pressure on Ukrainian president to have the willingness to end the dying and stop this very risky strategy for all of Europe."🔚 Folks, here is Weidel's imaginary reality: black is white, the victim is to blame for the crime against them, and defending your home against a bloody, illegal invasion that murders children and razes towns is "stupid," while letting Russia occupy you and carry out a country-wide Bucha massacre is probably smart. And defending yourself is risky! Risky, did you hear that? Well, no shit, just standing there and catching Russian ballistics with your face is risky, too. So we may as well take the risk and, hear me out, fight back? ​Please don't vote for this evil Russian appendix in Germany!
916
2,430
221
10,077
204,088
🎬 When it comes to security, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania see things we don’t see. They understand things we don’t understand. And they do things we don’t do. 🌍 Europe doesn’t have a Baltic problem. It has Baltic solutions. #BeMoreBaltic
2
49
13
139
9,522
toomas hendrik ilves retweeted
Ovviamente, ovunque all'estero stanno notando che le proteste italiane gridano lo stesso slogan espresso da Maria Zakharova (" soldi per le armi a Kyiv e niente alle scuole"), e c'è un forte sospetto di interferenze e operazioni russe bloomberg.com/news/articles/…
193
254
29
851
11,075
toomas hendrik ilves retweeted
Peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine following Russia’s attack on Crimea and the Donbas. No, this is not happening now; this is October 4, 1918.
6
16
765
toomas hendrik ilves retweeted
I'm sitting in a Kyiv hotel room listening to explosions that are rattling the windows. Meanwhile, the White House is trying to cyber-bully me because I criticized Steve Witkoff for calling Putin a “humanitarian.” What a weird night. Ah, to be an American journalist in Ukraine.
495
1,563
46
5,502
83,005
toomas hendrik ilves retweeted
lots of media stories on a new pentagon intel entity that will involve non official cover operations. I have no idea about any of this (really), I'm long out of that secret world. I yap on tv and watch the redsox full time now. sorry, cant confirm or deny any of this, not going there. but of course I read the pieces with interest. and what I will say is that due to the current ubiquitous technical surveillance (UTS) environment, which appears to me to be biggest challenge to HUMINT I've ever seen over the last century, this is the right way to approach espionage. official cover out of overseas locations is far less effective. no one can deny that. so whatever the IC is planning to do, in whatever alphabet soup agency, and if it has proper congressional oversight (very big deal), the use of non official cover to defeat our adversaries is absolutely the way to go. that's all I got.
4
8
38
3,492
toomas hendrik ilves retweeted
The US negotiated a contract for Ukraine to use Starshield. To answer exactly this question. Disingenuous at best. But then to argue it's being pulled away because Europe is regulating its own use of spectrum to Musk's displeasure. Wow.
Replying to @ralexdc
On Starlink’s role in Ukraine, Vance defends Elon Musk, arguing Musk shouldn’t be drawn into the war without U.S. government direction. He then criticized European leaders for relying on American technology while waging regulatory battles against SpaceX.
5
8
573
Read this and then think of Witkoff calling Putin a great humanitarian. And then try not to threaten up
Bucha. It was a genocide, recognized by everyone. They buried hundreds of people. They tortured people. We found the grave. There were, I believe, around 500 people. When we liberated those towns near Kyiv, there emerged this, you know, this kind of hatred for the Russians, right at that moment. Not even at the moment when they started the full-scale war. Back then nobody understood what it really was yet. People understood what this war was and what Putin did personally when we found those mass graves of tortured adults, children. I mean they didn't just kill them, they tortured and killed them. When we liberated Bucha, I said, bring every journalist here. Don't touch anything, just bring the journalists. The whole world simply has to see this. Imagine finding a mass grave in the U.S. or in Britain, God forbid, with 500 tortured people, adults, kids, dogs, animals shot dead. I mean, they held hunting sprees there from military vehicles. People were running, they were shooting, just hunting, playing games. They literally just played with people, like slavery. So how, after this, can you listen to Putin? And how, after this, can you forgive? From The Diary of a CEO podcast with Steven Bartlett. (2/3)
1
7
31
994
Bucha. It was a genocide, recognized by everyone. They buried hundreds of people. They tortured people. We found the grave. There were, I believe, around 500 people. When we liberated those towns near Kyiv, there emerged this, you know, this kind of hatred for the Russians, right at that moment. Not even at the moment when they started the full-scale war. Back then nobody understood what it really was yet. People understood what this war was and what Putin did personally when we found those mass graves of tortured adults, children. I mean they didn't just kill them, they tortured and killed them. When we liberated Bucha, I said, bring every journalist here. Don't touch anything, just bring the journalists. The whole world simply has to see this. Imagine finding a mass grave in the U.S. or in Britain, God forbid, with 500 tortured people, adults, kids, dogs, animals shot dead. I mean, they held hunting sprees there from military vehicles. People were running, they were shooting, just hunting, playing games. They literally just played with people, like slavery. So how, after this, can you listen to Putin? And how, after this, can you forgive? From The Diary of a CEO podcast with Steven Bartlett. (2/3)
444
2,270
91
11,018
296,474
toomas hendrik ilves retweeted
The International Criminal Court and its officials have been awarded the European Parliament's 2026 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. Learn more about the laureate here ➡️ link.europa.eu/rVBvTR
52
285
45
558
20,661
toomas hendrik ilves retweeted
The US framework for a Russo-Ukrainian settlement could be a basis for talks. But the Kremlin is apt to demand “security” that includes its domination of Ukraine & power over Europe’s eastern third. Will US negotiators spot this (& other) dangers? Will the US use, finally, its leverage to obtain a peace not based on Putin’s dream of Russian empire? washingtonpost.com/opinions/…
1
10
2
21
2,546
toomas hendrik ilves retweeted
Consider this a story in global affairs. Early this year, there was an effort afoot to find Secretary Hegseth an iconic globe for his office suite. Historians could make the move. But his team did not appear to want to wait. washingtonpost.com/national-…
37
410
47
3,027
310,782
toomas hendrik ilves retweeted
As ever the reality the Russian elite cannot process is that since every EU state is existentially dependent on the EU's system, individual EU states at the table end up representing and consulting with the collective decision-making processes anchored in Brussels.
Ru made it clear yesterday it could see the leaders of Finland and Norway at the table, but only as leaders of Ru neighboring states. Ru does not want anyone from Brussels there. The “neighbor” format may extend to Turkey/Poland/Slovakia/Romania/Hungary, but not now.
4
22
118
4,197