Husband of Estonian Prime Minister announces decision to sell his shares in Stark Logistics

The husband of Estonian Prime Minister Kai Kallas, Arvo Hallik, who is the financial director of the logistics company Stark Logistics, which provided services in Russia, decided to sell his stake in the company and leave it, transmits Estonian newspaper Postimees.

“Today, I agreed with the other shareholders of Stark Logistics that I will immediately sell all of my shares in Stark Logistics, step down from the company’s board of directors, step down as CFO, and relinquish all roles and responsibilities, transferring them to other employees,” he wrote. explaining his decision by the fact that this situation affects the work of Kai Kallas.

Hallik added that he had worked for the company for 14 years and during that time had always acted within the law. “We have repeatedly discussed the issue of transportation for our client and believed that we are doing the right thing, helping the right people and saving a good Estonian company,” he added.

The prime minister’s husband apologized for the situation and confirmed that Kallas was not aware of his business activities.

On August 23, information appeared in the media that Stark Logistics had resumed its work in Russia, despite the special operation in Ukraine. In a conversation with the ERP portal, CEO Kristjan Kraag informedthat the company is now transporting the last cargoes “so that the activities can be completed.” However, he did not name the exact volume of traffic and their number. According to Kraag, we are talking about warehouse balances that are not subject to sanctions.

After that, a wave of criticism hit the Prime Minister of Estonia. President Alar Karis demanded clarification from her on the fact of what happened. In turn, Callas notedthat she did not know anything about her husband’s entrepreneurial activities. She also stressed that all local companies should stop doing business in Russia.

Stark Logistics is registered in the Estonian city of Keila, located southwest of Tallinn. How writes Bloomberg, the company’s client operates an aerosol packaging plant in Russia, with final shipments due in September. According to ERP, Hallik owns 24% of Stark Logistics.