Rice assures Estonian PM of visa waiver coming soon

29.11.2007

WASHINGTON, Nov 29, BNS - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has assured the visiting head of the Estonian government that Estonians will definitely be able to travel visa-free to the United States soon.

Rice said political decisions have been made and technical solutions are in hand, the governmental press service reports. Estonian preparations are up to the mark and allow for fast progress, she added.

Prime Minister Andrus Ansip and Rice spoke at some length about missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. Rice thanked Estonian troops for their commitment to those tough missions. In her words, increasing the U.S. military presence in Iraq has produced good results and improved the security situation.

This has in Rice's judgment paved the way for political developments that allows Iraqis themselves to assume more responsibility for and control over their villages and towns.

The last six months have seen positive developments, but there is still a long way to go, Rice said.

Ansip reaffirmed Estonia's interest in continued military cooperation with the United States as it is very important to the Baltic state.

The two talked also about the situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan's impact on the stabilization of the region. According to Rice, the key to success is increasing Afghanistan's prosperity and raising the country's development level.

Ansip brought up the question of cyber defense in the meeting. The secretary acknowledged Estonia's information technology and cyber defense competence and underlined that Internet security is an important issue that should be addressed at the international level already at the NATO summit in Bucharest.

Among other topics discussed were the development of and support for new democracies and energy issues, the prime minister told BNS. Questions concerning the Conventional Armed Forces in Europe Treaty were also briefly touched upon.

Ansip visited today the Vietnam veterans memorial and met with representatives of the most influential U.S. Jewish organization, American Jewish Committee.

In this meeting, the role of Jews in the development of Estonia, Jews' unique position in prewar Estonia, activities of Estonia's Jewish community and Estonian-Israeli relations were discussed.

Tallinn newsroom, +372 610 8861, sise@bns.ee