Estonia's new coalition government takes office

Tallinn, July 19 The members of Estonia's new government coalition of the Reform Party, the conservative Isamaa (Fatherland) Party and the Social Democratic Party (SDE) were sworn in in front of the Parliament (Riigikogu).

Appointed earlier by President Alar Karis, who attended the ceremony on Monday, the new government will be in office for eight months until March 2023, when the country is scheduled to hold its next parliamentary elections.

There are 15 Ministers in the new coalition, five from each party.

Prime Minister and Reform Party Chair Kaja Kallas underlined that the most important tasks faced by the new government were ensuring the country's security, implementing measures to manage the energy crisis, and helping people cope with their daily life under the conditions of a rapid price rise.

On Friday, Kallas was granted a mandate by the Riigikogu to form the new government coalition, Xinhua news agency reported.

Currently, the new government coalition holds 55 seats in the 101-seat Parliament. The Reform Party has 34 seats, the Isamaa Party 12 and the SDE nine.

The Reform Party had been running the country as a minority government since the Prime Minister dismissed all seven Ministers from the junior coalition partner Center Party due to a dispute over welfare policy on June 3.

Kallas, 45, has led her party since 2018 and became the country's first female Prime Minister in 2021.

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