President Ilves: extremism is our biggest enemy in both the east and the very heart of Europe

The Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves has expressed concern about the growing influence of the extremist and neo-Nazi movement in Europe.

"Extremism is our biggest enemy, in both the east and the very heart of Europe," Ilves said, while giving a presentation at the Open Society Forum in Estonia, in the panel "The Art of Soft Power: the current political situation and tensions between the West and Russia".

Ilves stated that 25 years ago he believed in the view of Francis Fukuyama – that democracy had won – but today the international relations have reached a stage he would never have wanted to experience.

"The current security architecture in Europe, which relied on both the Helsinki Final Act and the Paris Charter, has now collapsed, following Russia's aggression in Ukraine," Ilves said.

The Estonian President also stated that the reaction to Russian aggression in Ukraine by the democratic West has been slow.

"In the European Union, a uniform response has been the main problem; however, there are countries that would like to delay the sanctions for economic reasons," noted Ilves.

When asked whether he believes that NATO will be there to help Estonia in the event of a military attack, President Ilves responded by saying: "Of course. Should NATO fail to abide by the principles stated in Article 5, NATO would lose its credibility and collapse. And all the NATO members know this."