Estonian parlt speaker: I'm not running for president

TALLINN - Speaker of the Estonian parliament Juri Ratas confirmed once more that he is not running for president in a social media post on Tuesday.

"The imminent presidential elections have pointed out the weaknesses of the current system and are now arriving, accompanied by various speculations," he said.

Ratas said that the parliamentary parties need to continue their efforts towards electing the next head of state in the Riigikogu and subsequently initiate direct presidential election during the upcoming parliamentary session. He opined that the presidential post and election should be taken seriously and be boosted with meaningful proposals enabling to elect the head of state on Aug. 30.

"I want to thank everyone who deems me worthy of the presidency but today the certain fact is that I am not running for president," Ratas said.