Estonian President Alar Karis has accepted the resignation of Prime Minister Kaja Kallas and begun talks on forming a new government, according to a press release from the president's office on Monday.

Kallas, who was nominated as the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, submitted her formal resignation to Karis during a brief meeting at the Presidential Palace in Tallinn.

The president thanked Kallas, who has led the Estonian government for three and a half years. He also announced that he would begin talks with representatives from all political parties in the Estonian Parliament (Riigikogu) to form a new government.