1. Urmas Reinsalu is a member and current leader of the Isamaa political party, and was the party leader from 2012 to 2015.
18 Facts About Urmas Reinsalu
1. 2.
Urmas Reinsalu was born in Tallinn, Estonia, on 22 June 1975.
3.
Urmas Reinsalu graduated from the Tallinn Secondary School No 37.
4.
Urmas Reinsalu then studied law at the University of Tartu, graduating in 1997.
5.
From 1996 to 1997, Urmas Reinsalu worked as a specialist in public law in the Estonian Ministry of Justice, and as an advisor to then Estonian President from 1996 to 1998.
6.
In 1998, Urmas Reinsalu was appointed Director of the Office of the President of Estonia, when Lennart Meri was in office.
7.
From 2002 to 2003, Urmas Reinsalu was a lecturer in the Estonian Academy of Security Sciences.
8.
From 2007 to 2013, Urmas Reinsalu was a member of the Riigikogu, the unicameral parliament of Estonia.
9.
On 28 January 2012, Urmas Reinsalu became the chairman of the Pro Patria and Res Publica Union, an Estonian national-conservative, Christian-democratic political party, replacing Mart Laar.
10.
Urmas Reinsalu was elected chairman with an absolute majority in the first round of voting at the party congress held in Tallinn.
11.
On 11 May 2012, Urmas Reinsalu was appointed minister of defence, replacing Mart Laar, who resigned from office for health reasons.
12.
On 9 April 2015, Urmas Reinsalu became the minister of justice in Taavi Roivas' second cabinet.
13.
Urmas Reinsalu was the Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs from April 2019 until January 2021.
14.
Urmas Reinsalu returned to the foreign ministry in July 2022, after Prime Minister Kaja Kallas dismissed her Estonian Centre Party coalition partners.
15.
On 31 March 2023 at a meeting of the Bucharest Nine Urmas Reinsalu called for the cancellation of the NATO-Russia Founding Act, because in his view cooperation with the country was "out of the question".
16.
In 2012, Urmas Reinsalu was criticized for endorsing Estonia's "Valentine's Day Law" that declared Estonian WW2 veterans who fought on the side of Nazi Germany "freedom fighters", and for attending the meeting of the Union of Estonian Freedom Fighters on the island Saaremaa.
17.
In January 2014, Urmas Reinsalu drew ire for lauding the Waffen SS veteran Harald Nugiseks, who was the recipient of Nazi Germany's highest military award Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, at his honorary burial.
18.
Urmas Reinsalu is fluent in English, German, Russian and Finnish.