Estonia’s diplomatic map has just stretched a little further across the globe – all the way to Tonga, the Polynesian kingdom so far from Tallinn that presenting credentials there feels like diplomacy with a dash of long-haul endurance.
On 25 March, Estonia’s ambassador to the Kingdom of Tonga, Jaan Reinhold, presented his credentials to King Tupou VI.
Behind the ceremony, however, was a serious conversation. Reinhold and the king discussed the role of small states in a changing world order, stressing the need for practical cooperation between Europe and the Pacific, strategic flexibility and a values-based foreign policy.
There was also clear alignment on Ukraine. According to Reinhold, Tonga has backed positions shared by Estonia in UN votes related to Ukraine, and King Tupou VI expressed support for Ukraine while condemning Russia’s aggression against an independent state.
The talks also touched on education, digital development and cyber security – areas in which Estonia increasingly turns up with something useful in its briefcase – as well as climate change, a pressing issue across the Pacific.
Tonga, a kingdom of around 170 islands in the South Pacific, is one of the world’s most remote states. Yet remoteness has hardly shielded it from the defining pressures of the 21st century, from climate vulnerability to shifting geopolitics.
Reinhold, a historian by training, has previously served in Vilnius, Shanghai, Central Asia and the Gulf. In addition to Tonga, he is currently Estonia’s ambassador to Australia, New Zealand, Samoa, Vanuatu and Fiji, and resides in Canberra.
