Estonia apologizes after minister taunts Finnish PM as 'sales girl'

16 Dec 2019 22:09
22 Jan 2026 03:37

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Estonia apologizes after minister taunts Finnish PM as 'sales girl'

Estonia apologized to Finland on Monday after Estonia’s interior minister mocked Finland’s new prime minister — the world’s youngest-serving government leader —

Mart Helme, 70, Estonian interior minister and leader of the populist far-right party Ekre, on Sunday ridiculed Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin, 34, and her government, in which four out of five coalition leaders are women under 35.

“Now we see how one sales girl has become a prime minister and how some other street activists and non-educated people have also joined the cabinet,” Helme said on his party’s radio talk show, Reuters reports.

His comments prompted the opposition to call for his resignation, while Estonian President Kersti Kaljulaid asked Finland’s President Sauli Niinisto to pass on her apologies to Marin and her government.

Social Democrat Marin, who has spoken about growing up in a disadvantaged family, worked as a cashier before studying at university and embarking on a political career.

“I’m extremely proud of Finland. Here a poor family’s child can educate themselves and achieve their goals in life. A cashier can become even a prime minister,” Marin wrote on Twitter.

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