OREANDA-NEWS. June 04, 2009. President Toomas Hendrik Ilves signed a resolution today appointing Jurgen Ligi as Minister of Finance and Marko Pomerants as Minister of the Interior. The corresponding proposal was made to the Head of State by Andrus Ansip, the Head of Government.

President Ilves stressed that the Ministers of Finance and the Interior are two of the government’s most important ministers, who are greatly responsible for shaping the financial and economic wellbeing of Estonia as well as the country’s domestic security.

“The election promises that were made two years ago are a thing of the past. If anyone does not understand this and tries to base today’s and tomorrow’s decisions on these old promises, this will result in a dangerous dead-end,” the Head of State said. “Although the 2009 national budget has been very ill-fated since its birth, I still hope that that the ongoing patching of the budget will somehow succeed. A much more complicated situation awaits us in the preparation of the 2010 and 2011 budgets, when we will not be able to manage without making fundamental changes in the planning of income and expenditures.”

According to President Ilves, along with improving the people’s economic situation and ability to cope, maintaining domestic security is also very important.

“The work of the Minister of the Interior and his subordinates is of key importance in this regard,” the Head of State said. “I know that our border guards, police officers, rescue workers and citizenship officials are very professional and dedicated to their jobs. The role of the state is to maintain their motivation, which means caring about people, as well as understanding the importance of modern equipment and everyday conditions.”