Estonia’s President and Latvian security expert engaged!

Latvian fiancée good for Estonian president

Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves has announced his engagement to the Latvian security expert Ieva Kupce. PR consultant Ilona Leib speculates on how this union will affect the president’s image and that of Estonia’s neighbouring country Latvia:

“Instead of the stubborn, arrogant and chilly image the president presented at the start of the year, we are now seeing an easygoing, happy, ‘rocking’ guy with a slightly exotic partner. You get the feeling that everything is being pushed through quickly so that the president is remembered not as a president of divorce but a president of marriage. His professional reputation has not suffered because of his new partner as her professional background is acceptable to us – she is the head of the cyber-security department of a Nato member state. It will be interesting to see how the president’s engagement affects the way the Estonians perceive Latvia.”