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Estonian Review: May 16-22, 2005
25.05.2005
TOP NEWS
FOREIGN NEWS
DOMESTIC NEWS
DEFENCE NEWS
ECONOMIC NEWS
CULTURAL NEWS
TOP NEWS
Border treaties are signed between Estonia and Russia
May 18 - Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Paet and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov signed the "Treaty between the Government of the Republic of Estonia and the Government of the Russian Federation on the Estonian-Russian Border" and the "Treaty between the Government of the Republic of Estonia and the Government of the Russian Federation on the delimitation of the maritime zones in the Gulf of Finland and the Gulf of Narva".
According to Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Paet, the Foreign Ministers meeting took place in a constructive and future pondering atmosphere. The Russian side seemed to be ready to move on with relations. "The signing of the border treaties creates preconditions for continue development of Estonian-Russian relations, whereby the success of the co-operation depends on the will of both sides," added Paet. Foreign Minister Paet hopes that we can now move on in the signing of other bilateral agreements. Paet affirmed that historical-legal dialogue with Russia would continue.
After signing the treaties, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov declared hope to continue the developing of good, bilateral, neighbourly relations. "The sides are open to mutually beneficial co-operation," said Lavrov.
Foreign Minister Lavrov also affirmed that a decision has been made regarding the return of the sign of office of the President of the Republic of Estonia. Currently, Russia is looking for an internal legal basis to return the collar.
The Border Treaties need to be ratified and will come into force 30 days after the exchange of letters of ratification. The State Border will be officially demarcated after both Governments have approved the State Border Delineation, Border Markers Protocol and Demarcation Card. A demarcation commission will be formed based on the principle of parity. Demarcation can begin only after the treaties have entered into force.
Paet: Luxembourg's new proposals for the future budget of the European Union are more favourable for Estonia than before
May 22 - Foreign Minister Urmas Paet participated in the European Union Foreign Ministers Conclave, where the EU's financial perspective for the years 2007-2013 was discussed.
The Luxembourg Presidency had prepared a revised negotiating box for yesterday's talks, the amendments proposals of which this time are according to Foreign Minister Paet more favourable for Estonia than before. "A fair solution has been reached in the computing of the structural aid ceiling, because now individual economic growth indicators are taken into consideration instead of using the former growth indicator of 4.14%. This indicator was a result of grouping the new member countries and was considerably lower than Estonia's estimated economic growth." Foreign Minister Paet acknowledged. The Foreign Minister welcomed the attempt by the Presidency to find a solution for the question of own resources. According to Paet, the Presidency considers a new approach for Great Britain's rebate or such payback to be important. This would, after the year 2013, ensure a so-called clean budget from which no rebates will be made.
The Luxembourg Presidency's Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn expressed hope that all these recent changes will contribute to finding a compromise and reaching a political agreement at the European Council in June.
Estonia's Foreign Minister acknowledged the Presidency's attempts to find a balance between the positions of 25 Member States. According to Paet's assessment, "it is important to reach an agreement in June in order to ensure the political and economic development of the European Union. The Presidency has done significant work in that name and the revised negotiating box is clearly better than the former one. Thus, the probability of reaching an agreement in June has considerably grown".
The financial perspective will be under discussion also at the next Foreign Ministers Conclave as well as at the Finance Ministers meeting in June and also at bilateral meetings of the Presidency with Member States.
Estonia shared EU related experience with Georgian Civil Servants
May 20 - A week long training of Georgian Civil Servants ended, where lecturers from the University of Tartu as well as experts from different institutions introduced Estonia's experience in the field of EU integration.
Foreign Minister Urmas Paet met with those having passed the course and presented them with Estonian School of Diplomacy certificates from the organiser of the event. "One of the main goals of Estonian development co-operation is sharing the Estonian reform experience with other countries," Paet said. "Georgia is one of the principal target countries of our bilateral development co-operation programme," he added.
Out of means earmarked for development aid projects nearly 1.5 million kroons will be directed at Georgia. This year, development co-operation projects to train officials from the Georgian Parliament, policemen, employees of the Georgian State Chancellery, heads of professional education institutions and specialists are planned.
Estonia's preferred development co-operation regions are Eastern and South Eastern Europe and the Southern Caucasus. The main target countries are Georgia and Ukraine, also Albania, Armenia, Uzbekistan, Moldova and Russia.
8 million kroons is allocated from the Foreign Ministry's 2005 budget to development and humanitarian aid.
Detailed project descriptions and an overview of Estonian development co-operation projects in earlier years are available on the Foreign Ministry's home page at the address: http://www.vm.ee/eng/kat_178/
FOREIGN NEWS
US Senate passes resolution calling for Russian apology for occupation of the Baltics
May 21 - The United States Senate passed a non-binding concurrent resolution on 19 May asking that the Russian Federation admit and condemn the Soviet occupation of the three Baltic States.
"The Government of the Russian Federation should issue a clear and unambiguous statement admitting and condemning the illegal occupation and annexation from 1940 to 1991 of the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, the consequence of which will be a significant increase in good will among the affected peoples and enhanced regional stability," the resolution says.
The document describes the incorporation in 1940 of the Baltic countries into the Soviet Union as "an act of aggression carried out against the will of sovereign people."
The Soviet occupation "brought countless suffering to the Baltic peoples through terror, killings and deportations to Siberian concentration camps", reads the resolution, stating that "the peoples of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania bravely resisted Soviet aggression and occupation."
The Senate pointed out that the US has been steadfast in its policy of not recognizing the illegal Soviet annexation of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.
"Truth is a powerful weapon for healing, forgiving, and reconciliation, but its absence breeds distrust, fear, and hostility; and whereas countries that cannot clearly admit their historical mistakes and make peace with their pasts cannot successfully build their futures," said the US Senate.
Foreign Minister Paet met with EU Special Representative in Afghanistan Francesc Vendrell
May 17 - Foreign Minister Urmas Paet met with EU Special Representative in Afghanistan Francesc Vendrell, who visiting Estonia. At the meeting, mostly the situation in Afghanistan and the presence of the EU there was under discussion.
Francesc Vendrell, who has as of July 2002 been the EU Special Representative in Afghanistan, assessed the developments of the recent years in Afghanistan as inspiring optimism. "That the work in Afghanistan has been fruitful is confirmed by the presidential elections on 9 October 2004", he added. In Vendrell's opinion, the presidential elections taking place on 18 September of this year will be a challenge. "There is a danger that the elections will not be based on policy positions, but rather on ethnic groups and individuals," Vendrell specified. In addition, the elections require the implementation of comprehensive security measures.
Vendrell stated that the necessity of an international presence would remain also after the presidential elections. That has been confirmed also by Afghanistan's authorities, which acknowledged that the institutional rebuilding would not end with the elections; since they are not as of yet ready to act independently. A serious problem for Afghanistan will continually be the growing of opium poppies.
Foreign Minister Paet informed that in the future Estonia would like to put an emphasis on the Afghanistan mission. "Even this year, Estonia is enhancing its participation in Afghanistan by participating in a Provincial Reconstruction Team led by Great Britain in the Mazar-e-Sharif region," Foreign Minister Paet said. "Currently, 18 Estonian servicemen are serving in Afghanistan. That number may amount to 25 by the end of the year," he added. In addition, the Estonian EOD team is on a mission in the framework of the operation Enduring Freedom.
Foreign Minister met with his colleague Erkki Tuomioja
May 18 - Foreign Minister Urmas Paet met with Finnish Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja in Helsinki on his way back from Moscow.
At the meeting, the recent visit of the Estonian Foreign Minister to Moscow was discussed and Estonian -Russian relations were also touched upon.
Foreign Minister Urmas Paet gave an overview of his meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and of the signing of the border treaties between the Republic of Estonia and the Russian Federation. Urmas Paet confirmed that the Foreign Ministers meeting in Moscow took place in a constructive atmosphere and "I hope that the signing of the treaties will create preconditions for further favourable development of bilateral relations," he added.
Foreign Minister Tuomioja welcomed the signing of the Estonian-Russian border treaty.
The Estonian and Finnish Foreign Ministers exchanged ideas on the EU and Russia. The Foreign Ministers expressed satisfaction with the agreement reached on the four common spaces package at the EU-Russia Summit on 10 May. The Foreign Ministers acknowledged that this is an important stage in EU-Russia relations.
Estonia's Rüütel calls for all totalitarian regimes to be condemned
May 17, BNS - Estonia's President Arnold Rüütel in his speech at the Council of Europe summit in Warsaw reiterated the need to condemn all the totalitarian regimes that have existed in Europe.
"A free and democratic Europe cannot be based on half-truth -- in order to achieve real unity of Europe the crimes of all the totalitarian regimes have to be condemned and what happened in the past admitted by all parties," Rüütel said.
The Estonian President said this was necessary for the sake of common future and it would open up new opportunities for Europe's development.
In the words of the Estonian President, the Council of Europe should in the future focus its efforts on areas where the organization's effectiveness has been proved over the years and give up what is less important.
What has to be maintained is what makes the Council of Europe a strong organization -- representation of all European countries, preventive activity, working out of common norms, standards and evaluation criteria. He said the efficient working of the convention on human rights and the European Court of Human Rights was of utmost importance to ensuring democracy, human rights and rule of law.
Estonian President thanks Netherlands for co-operation
May 17 - Estonian President Arnold Rüütel met with the Dutch Prime Minister, Jan Peter Balkenende, on the sidelines of the Council of Europe summit in Warsaw.
The President expressed gratitude to the Netherlands for successful co-operation within the framework of the European Union and NATO. He also voiced hope that in the future, relations in different fields can be intensified further.
Balkenende promised to encourage Dutch businesses to pay even more attention to Estonia. The Estonian President and the Dutch Head of Government regarded the promoting of cultural ties between the countries to be important.
Estonian, Latvian PMs content with relations between countries
May 20 - Meeting in Riga, Prime Ministers Andrus Ansip of Estonia and Aigars Kalvitis of Latvia expressed their satisfaction with the development of relations between the two countries.
There is also good cross-border co-operation between the local governments of the border regions of the two countries, Ansip said.
They expressed hope that Latvia will be able to solve the problem that has arisen with its border treaty with Russia and Ansip pledged to extend his moral support in this.
The Estonian Premier pointed out the rapid speed at which the EU constitutional treaty is advancing in ratification readings in the Latvian parliament. Latvian lawmakers completed the first reading of the ratification bill Thursday and are scheduled to hold the final reading on May 26.
Ansip and Kalvitis also spoke about co-operation in energy and about their tax policy. Kalvitis said a tax reduction could become reality in Latvia as well.
Meeting of the Prime Ministers of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania
May 20 - The Prime Minister of the Republic of Estonia Andrus Ansip, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Latvia Aigars Kalvītis and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Lithuania Algirdas Brazauskas met in Riga, Latvia to discuss the state of play in negotiations on the EU Financial Perspective 2007 - 2013.
The Prime Ministers welcomed the close co-operation between Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, and the common efforts in discussions on the Financial Perspective, in particular on cohesion policy.
The Prime Ministers underlined that the outcome of negotiations on cohesion policy should reflect the objectives of the Treaty and be based on the principle of solidarity with the least developed EU Member States. The EU cohesion policy will have to continue to be directed towards the objective of bridging the economic gap among the Member States. The Prime Ministers recalled that the perspective of 2007 - 2013 would be decisive for the Baltic States in achieving that objective.
The Prime Ministers stressed the importance of reaching political agreement on the Financial Perspective 2007-2013 during the Luxembourg Presidency at the June European Council and stressed the need for constructive and efficient approaches from all EU Member States. Timely agreement on the Financial Perspective is essential to plan and implement investments aimed at faster convergence of new Member States. It will also be an important signal for the citizens of these countries demonstrating the importance of solidarity and cohesion in the enlarged European Union.
DOMESTIC NEWS
MP Tootsen becomes Head of Estonian Riigikogu's Defence Committee
May 17 - The Estonian Riigikogu's National Defence Committee elected Toivo Tootsen as its new Chairman.
Tootsen is replacing Sven Mikser. Trivimi Velliste, a member of the opposition, was re-elected as Vice Chairman of the committee.
DEFENCE NEWS
Estonia: Scouts Battalion takes into use Finnish-made armoured personnel carriers
May 17 - The Chief of the Estonian Defence Forces Logistics Centre handed to the Commander of the Scouts Battalion the keys to the very first of the Finnish-made Pasi armoured personnel carriers to be employed by the battalion.
Accepting the keys from Maj. Paul Vaha, Lt. Col. Indrek Sirel said the introduction of the Pasi APCs marked an important stage in the development of the Scouts Battalion.
Estonia to send three more NCOs to Afghanistan
May 19 - Three Estonian Air Force non-commissioned officers (NCOs) left for a mission to serve as part of the NATO forces at the Kabul international airport
The NCOs will join a ten-member team made up of servicemen from various countries that will provide technical support to arriving aircraft.
An Estonian Air Force meteorologist and a member of the airport team are already serving at the Kabul international airport.
Estonian military to take part in NATO exercise in Spain
May 18 - Eight officers and non-commissioned officers from Estonia will take part in this year's largest NATO crisis management exercise that is being held in Spain from May 18 to June 2.
Allied Action 2005 is the largest NATO staff exercise this year and it won't involve any combat units, spokespeople for the Estonian General Staff said.
Members of the Estonian Defence Forces are taking part in the Allied Action exercise for the fifth time, joining its operations, reconnaissance and information units.
In all more than 3 400 military personnel from 23 NATO member states and 11 partner countries will take part in the exercise.
The purpose of the exercise is to train activation of the NATO rapid reaction forces and their dispatch to operation areas. The exercise focuses on rapid simultaneous mobilisation of ground, naval and air forces and their co-operation in the NATO Response Force (NRF).
Poles to patrol Baltic skies with MiG jets
May 19 - Poland will take over the NATO air policing duties in the Baltic States from the beginning of next year, using MiG-29 fighter jets to carry out the mission.
Poland will deploy four jets with six pilots and 59 ground personnel at the Zokniai Air Base near Siauliai, Lithuania.
Since the entry of the Baltic States into NATO, planes of other NATO members have guarded their air space.
From October through December, US jets will protect the Baltic air space.
ECONOMIC NEWS
Baltics place well in global Gender Gap Index
May 16 - The World Economic Forum released its first study attempting to quantify the size of the "gender gap" in 58 countries; Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania placed well.
The report measures the size of the gap between women and men in five critical areas: equal remuneration for equal work, access to the labour market, representation of women in decision-making structures, access to education and access to healthcare.
The study ranks Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Denmark and Finland at the top of the list. The European Union countries generally placed high in the rankings with 10 EU members in the top 15. Latvia placed 11th, Lithuania followed in 12th position and Estonia ranked 15th.
Regarding Estonia, the study noted as positive women's access to the labour market, but the country needed work on health care.
Estonian President appoints Central Bank's new Governor
May 18 - Estonian President Arnold Rüütel appointed Vice Chairman of the Parliament Andres Lipstok as President of the Bank of Estonia as of 7 June.
Rüütel met in the morning with the Head of the Central Bank's Supervisory Council, Mart Sõrg, and Lipstok. They discussed the situation of the country's economy and banking, the presence of banks in rural areas and development possibilities for savings and loan associations.
Estonia's producer price index up 0.1 per cent in April
May 20 - The producer price index in Estonia grew 0.1 per cent in April compared to March and increased 2.7 per cent compared to April 2004, the Statistical Office reports.
"The producer price index was most affected in April in comparison to March by price rises in the timber industry, the manufacture of chemicals and chemical products and by a decline in prices in the food industry," the statisticians noted.
In manufacturing, producer prices did not change from March, but showed a year-on-year growth of 3.2 per cent. In energy supply, the producer price index increased by 0.8 per cent month-on-month and declined by 2.1 per cent compared to April 2004. In mining, the index was down by 0.9 percent compared to March, but rose by 2.7 per cent year-on-year.
The export price index grew 0.4 per cent month-on-month and was up by 4.2 per cent compared to April 2004. The growth in the import price index was 0.3 per cent month-on-month and 3.9 per cent on the year.
Currency Rates in Kroons
May 22, 2005
British pound - GBP - 22.756
Canadian dollar - CAD - 9.847
Swiss franc - CHF - 10.120
Danish krone - DKK - 2.101
Japanese yen - JPY - 0.115
Latvian lat - LVL - 22.471
Lithuanian lit - LTL - 4.531
Norwegian krone - NOK - 1.925
Russian rouble - RUB - 0.442
Swedish krona - SEK - 1.702
US dollar - USD - 12.378
Euro - EUR - 15.647
CULTURAL NEWS
The international music festival "Tubin and his time 2005" took place
May 19 - The festival was dedicated to the 100th anniversary of birth of one of the most distinguished Estonian composers Eduard Tubin (1905-1982). To celebrate Eduard Tubin's 100th anniversary many concerts and activities took place.
Organised jointly by the Eduard Tubin Society and Eesti Kontsert, the most comprehensive event was the international festival where different conductors and orchestras performed all his 10 symphonies. This was an attempt to give a complete cyclic overview of Tubin as a composer. Famous Estonian conductors like Neeme Järvi (He has recorded the greater part of Tubin's symphonic music (BIS) and has recieved the highest international recognition), Paavo Järvi and Eri Klas participated in the festival.
EESTI RINGVAADE is compiled from local news services, including BNS, and is issued by the Press and Information Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Eesti Ringvaade is also available through the Internet at http://www.vm.ee
To subscribe please contact: vmpress@vm.ee
 
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