DefMin's secretary general to be nominated for head of Information Board

Photo: Raigo Pajula

Defense Minister Hannes Hanso is going to nominate Mikk Marran for director general of the Information Board, Estonia's main intelligence agency.

Hanso will on Thursday propose to the government to appoint Marran, currently secretary general of the Defense Ministry, as head of the Information Board, spokespeople for the ministry said.

Marran's candidacy for the position found unanimous support in the parliamentary Security Authorities Surveillance Select Committee on Monday. «We found him to be a good candidate,» committee chair Ken-Marti Vaher told BNS.

According to Hanso Marran is a capable leader and an outstanding expert in the field of security, spokespeople for the Defense Ministry said. «Marran has done big deeds in Estonia's national defense and made sure that our country stands bigger on the international scene than could be assumed from our population size and macro indicators,» the minister said. «Marran has for years led the discussion on the necessity of allied presence and ensured sustainable development of this area of government through realistic and forward-looking planning.»

The job of director general of the Information Board is a big responsibility and challenge, Marran said, describing the agency as Estonia's first line of defense.

If appointed into office by the government, Marran will take office on Jan. 1, 2016.

His predecessor, Rainer Saks, was appointed secretary general of the Foreign Ministry in August.

The Information Board, a security authority within the area of government of the Defense Ministry, is tasked with collecting and processing information necessary for formulating Estonia's foreign, economic and national defense policy and for national defense.