National Trade Data Bank ITEM ID : ST BNOTES ESTONIA DATE : Oct 28, 1994 AGENCY : U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE PROGRAM : BACKGROUND NOTES TITLE : Background Notes - ESTONIA Source key : ST Program key : ST BNOTES Update sched. : Occasionally Data type : TEXT End year : 1994 Date of record : 19941018 Keywords 3 : Keywords 3 : | ESTONIA BACKGROUND NOTES: ESTONIA PUBLISHED BY THE BUREAU OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE Official Name: Republic of Estonia PROFILE Geography Area: 45,226 sq. km. (18,086 sq. miles); about the size of New Hampshire and Vermont. Cities: Capital--Tallinn (1991 pop. 481,500). Other cities--Tartu (115,400); Narva (82,300); Kohtla-Jarve (76,800); Parnu (54,200); Sillamae (20,700); Rakvere (20,100). Terrain: Flat, with an average elevation of 50 m. Elevation is slightly higher in the east and southeast. Steep limestone banks and 1,520 islands mark the coastline. Climate: Temperate, with four seasons of near-equal length. People Nationality: Noun and adjective--Estonian(s). Population: 1.6 million. Annual growth rate--0.7%. Ethnic groups: Estonians 62%, Russians 30%, Ukrainians 3%, Belorussians 2%. Religions: Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Baptist. Language: Estonian (official). Most people also speak Russian. Education: Years compulsory--11. By 1989, 12% of the adult populace completed college. Attendance--214,000 students at 561 schools, plus 24,000 university students. Literacy--99%. Health: Infant mortality rate--12/1,000 births. Life expectancy--65 years for males, 74 for females. Work force (785,500 people): Industry--32%. Agriculture--12%. Education, Culture--12%. Construction--10%. Trade--9%. Transport--8%. Health care--6%. Housing--5%. Other--4%. Government--2%. Government Type: Parliamentary democracy. Constitution: On June 28, 1992, Estonians ratified a constitution based on the 1938 model, offering legal continuity to the Republic of Estonia prior to Soviet occupation. Branches: Executive--president (chief of state), elected by parliament every five years; prime minister (head of government). Legislative--Riigikogu (parliament: 101 members, 5-year term); Judicial--Supreme Court. Administrative regions: 15 counties and 6 independent towns. Political parties/coalitions: Pro Patria ("Fatherland")--30 seats in Parliament; National Independence Party (ENIP)--11 seats; Moderates (Social Democrats)--12 seats; Secure Home (Technocrats)--17 seats; Popular Front--15 seats; Monarchists (independent)--8 seats; Estonian Citizen (nationalist)--6 seats; Green Movement--1 seat; Entrepreneurs--1 seat; Communists--0 seats. Suffrage: Universal at 18; non-citizen residents may vote in municipal elections. Economy GDP (1992 est): $834 million. 1994 growth rate: 6.4%. Per capita income: $540. Natural resources: Oil shale, phosphorite, limestone, blue clay. Agriculture/forestry (20% of 1991 GDP): Milk and dairy products, meat, cereals, potatoes. Cultivable land--1.36 million hectares (60% arable, 18% meadow, 13% pasture). Industry (42% of GDP): Electricity, oil shale, chemical products, electric motors, textiles, furniture, cellulose/paper products, building materials, processed foods. Trade: Exports--$827 million: Foodstuffs; textiles and footware; metals and jewelry; minerals; glassware; stones; wood/wood products; furniture; machinery and equipment. Partners--Finland (22%), Russia (20%), Sweden (10%), Germany (9%), Latvia (8%), Netherlands (5%), U.S. (2%). Imports--$902 million, 1993 est.: Food, fuel, raw materials, and machinery. Partners--Finland (26%), Russia (19%), Germany (11%), Sweden (9%), Lithuania (4%), U.S. (2%). Exchange rate (July 1994): 13 kroon (EEK)=U.S. $ 1. PEOPLE The name "Eesti," or Estonia, is derived from the word "Aisti," the name given by the ancient Germans to the peoples living northeast of the Vistula River. The Roman historian Tacitus in the first century A.D. was the first to mention the Aisti, and early Scandinavians called the land south of the Gulf of Finland "Eistland," and the people "aistr." Estonians belong to the Baltic-Finnic group of the Finno-Ugric peoples, as do the Finns and Hungarians. Archaeological finds show human activity in the region as early as 8000 B.C. The ancestors of the Estonians appear to have arrived from the east about 5,000 years ago. A strong Nordic influence is evident, the result of cultural and religious influences gained over centuries of Germanic and Scandinavian colonization and settlement. This highly literate society places strong emphasis upon education, which is free and compulsory until age 16. Most Estonians belong to the Evangelical Lutheran Church, but a sizable minority are Russian Orthodox. From 1945 to 1989 the percentage of ethnic Estonians in Estonia dropped from 94% to 61%, caused primarily by the Soviet program promoting mass immigration of urban industrial workers from Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus as well as by wartime emigration and Stalin's mass deportations and executions. Estonia's citizenship law and constitution meet international and Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) standards, guaranteeing universal human and civil rights. Written with the Latin alphabet, Estonian is the language of the Estonian people and the official language of the country. One-third of the standard vocabulary is derived from adding suffixes to root words. The oldest known examples of written Estonian originate in 13th-century chronicles. The Soviet era had imposed the official use of Russian, so most Estonians speak Russian as a second language, while the resident Slavic populace speaks Russian as a first language. HISTORY Estonians are one of the longest-settled European peoples, whose forebears, known to archaeologists as the "comb pottery" people, lived on the southeastern shores of the Baltic Sea more than 5,000 years ago. Like other early agricultural societies, Estonians were organized into economically self-sufficient, male-dominated clans with few differences in wealth or social power. By the early Middle Ages most Estonians were small landholders, with farmsteads primarily organized by village. Estonian government remained decentralized, with local political and administrative subdivisions emerging only during the first century A.D. By then, Estonia had a population of more than 150,000 people and remained the last corner of medieval Europe to be Christianized. Estonia also managed to remain nominally independent from the Vikings to the west and Kievan Rus to the east, subject only to occasional forced tribute collections. However, the Danes conquered Toompea, the hilled fortress at what is now the center of Tallinn, and in 1227 the German crusading order of the Sword Brethren defeated the last Estonian stronghold; the people were Christianized, colonized, and enserfed. Despite attempts to restore independence, Estonia was divided among three domains, and small states were formed. Tallinn joined the Hanseatic League in 1248. By 1236, the Sword Brethren allied with the Order of the Teutonic Knights and became known as the Livonian Order of the Teutonic Knights. Finding upkeep of the distant colony too costly, the Danes in 1346 sold their part of Estonia to the Livonian Order. Despite successful Russian raids and invasions in 1481 and 1558, the local German barons continued to rule Estonia and preserved Estonian commitment to the Protestant Reformation. Northern Estonia submitted to Swedish control in 1561 during the Livonian Wars, and southern Estonia (Livonia) became part of Lithuania's Duchy of Courland. In 1631, Swedish King Gustav II Adolf granted the peasantry some measure of greater autonomy, opened the first school in Tallinn, where Estonian was taught, and in the following year established a printing press and university in the city of Tartu. The Swedish defeat resulting in the 1721 Treaty of Nystad imposed Russian rule in the territory that became modern Estonia, uniting it under on! e rule. By 1819 the Baltic provinces were the first in the Russian empire in which serfdom was abolished, spurring the peasants to own their own land or move to the cities. These moves created the economic foundation for the Estonian national cultural awakening that had lain dormant for some 600 years of foreign rule. Estonia was caught in a current of national awakening that began sweeping through Europe in the mid-1800s. A cultural movement evolved to adopt the use of Estonian as the language of instruction in schools, all-Estonian song festivals were held regularly after 1869, and a national literature developed. Kalevipoeg, Estonia's epic national poem, was published in 1861 in both Estonian and German. More importantly, activists who agitated for a modern national culture also agitated for a modern national state. As the 1905 revolution swept the country, Estonians called for freedom of the press and assembly, for universal franchise, and for national autonomy. The 1905 uprisings were brutally suppressed, and Estonian gains were minimal, but the tense stability that prevailed between 1905 and 1917 allowed Estonians to advance the aspiration of national statehood. With the collapse of the Russian empire in World War I, Russia's provisional government granted national autonomy to Estonia. An autonomous Estonian government (Maapaev) was formed but was quickly forced underground by opposing extremist political forces. The Committee of Elders of the underground Maapaev announced the establishment of the Republic of Estonia on February 24, 1918, one day before German troops invaded. After the withdrawal of German troops in November 1918, fighting broke out between Bolshevik troops and Estonian partisans. On February 2, 1920, the Treaty of Tartu--the Soviet Union's first foreign peace treaty--was signed by the Republic of Estonia and the Soviet Union. The terms of the treaty stated that the Soviet Union renounced in perpetuity all rights to the territory of Estonia. Independence lasted 22 years. Estonia underwent a number of economic, social, and political reforms necessary to come to terms with its new status as a sovereign state. Economically and socially, land reform in 1919 was the most important step. Large estate holdings belonging to the Baltic nobility were redistributed among the peasants and especially among volunteers in what they called the war of independence. Loss of markets in the east led to considerable hardships until Estonia developed an export-based economy and domestic industries. Estonia's principal markets became Scandinavia, Great Britain, and Western Europe, with some exports to the United States and Soviet Union. During its early independence, Estonia operated under a liberal democratic constitution patterned on the Swiss model. However, with between 9 and 14 politically divergent parties, Estonia experienced 20 different parliamentary governments between 1919 and 1933. The Great Depression spawned the growth of powerful, far-rightist parties which successfully pushed popular support in 1933 for a new constitution granting much stronger executive powers. In a preemptive move against the far right, Estonia's President, Konstantin Pats, dissolved parliament and governed the country by decree. By 1938, Estonia ratified a third, more balanced, and very liberal constitution and elected a new parliament the following year. The independence period was one of great cultural advancement. Estonian language schools were established, and artistic life of all kinds flourished. One of the more notable cultural acts of this time was a guarantee of cultural autonomy to minority groups. Estonia had pursued a policy of neutrality, but the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop non-aggression pact on August 23, 1939, signaled the end of independence. The agreement provided for the Soviet occupation of Estonia, Latvia, part of Finland, and, later, Lithuania in return for Nazi Germany's assuming control over most of Poland. The Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic was proclaimed on July 21, 1940, and was incorporated into the Soviet Union on August 6. Soviet occupation was accompanied by expropriation of property, Sovietization of cultural life, and the installation of Stalinist communism in political life. Deportations also quickly followed, beginning on the night of June 14, 1941, when more than 10,000 people--most of them women, children, and the elderly--were taken from their homes and sent to Siberia in cattle cars. When Nazi Germany attacked the Soviet Union on June 22, most Estonians greeted the Germans with relatively open arms. During two-and-a-half years of Nazi occupation, Estonia became a part of the German Ostland, and about 5,500 Estonians died in concentration camps. However, few Estonians welcomed the Red Army's push through the Baltics in January 1944. Some 10% of the population fled to the West between 1940 and 1944. By late September, Soviet forces expelled the last German troops from Estonia, ushering in a second phase of Soviet rule. That year, Moscow also moved to transfer the Estonian Narva and Petseri border districts, which had large percentages of ethnic Russians, to Russian control. For the next decade, an anti-Soviet guerrilla movement known as "the Forest Brethren" operated in the countryside. Composed of formerly conscripted Estonian soldiers from the German army, fugitives from the Soviet military draft or security police arrest, and those seeking revenge for mass deportations, the Forest Brethren used abandoned German and Soviet equipment and worked in groups or alone. In the hope that protracted resistance would encourage Allied intervention for the restoration of Estonian independence, the movement reached its zenith in 1946-48 with an estimated 5,000 followers and held effective military control in some rural areas. After the war, the Estonian Communist Party (ECP) became the pre-eminent organization in the republic. Most of the new members were Russified Estonians who had spent most of their lives in the Soviet Union. Not surprisingly, Estonians were reluctant to join the ECP and thus take part in the Sovietization of their own country. The ethnic Estonian share in ECP membership went from 90% in 1941 to 48% in 1952. After Stalin's death, party membership vastly expanded its social base to include more ethnic Estonians. By the mid-1960s, ethnic Estonian membership stabilized near 50%. On the eve of perestroika, the ECP claimed about 100,000 members; less than half were ethnic Estonians and they comprised less than 2% of the country's population. Russians or Russified Estonians continued to dominate the party's upper echelons. A positive aspect of the post-Stalin era in Estonia was a reopening of citizens' contacts with foreign countries late in the 1950s. Ties were also restored with Finland, boosting a flourishing black market. In the mid-1960s, Estonians began watching Finnish television. This electronic "window on the West" afforded Estonians more information on current affairs and more access to Western culture and thought than any other group in the Soviet Union. This expanded media environment was important in preparing Estonians for their vanguard role in extending perestroika during the Gorbachev era. By the 1970s, national concerns--including worries about ecological ruin--became the major theme of dissent in Estonia. Estonian society grew increasingly concerned about the threat of cultural Russification to the Estonian language and national identity. By 1981, Russian was taught in the first grade of Estonian-language schools and was also introduced into Estonian pre-schools. These acts had prompted 40 established intellectuals to write a letter to Moscow and the republic authorities. This "Letter of the Forty" spoke out against the use of force against protestors and the increasing threat to the Estonian language and culture. By the beginning of the Gorbachev era, concern over the cultural survival of the Estonian people had reached a critical point. Although these complaints were first couched in environmental terms, they quickly became the vehicles for expressing straightforward political national feelings. Estonian nationalists drew upon the two decades of independence after World War I as inspiration for their struggle. The ECP remained stable in the early perestroika years and appeared strong at its 19th Congress in 1986. By 1988, however, the ECP's weakness became clear when it was unable to assume more than a passive role and was relegated to a reactive position in government. Praising the 1980 "Letter of the Forty," Vaino Valjas replaced Karl Vaino as party chief and thereby temporarily enhanced the ECP's reputation. Nevertheless, the party continued its downward spiral of influence in 1989 and 1990. In November 1989, the Writers' Union Party Organization voted to suspend its activity, and the Estonian Komsomol disbanded. In February 1990, Estonia's Supreme Soviet eliminated paragraph 6 of the republic's constitution, which had guaranteed the Party's leading role in society. The final blow came at the ECP's 20th congress in March 1990 when it voted to break with the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU). The party splintered into three branches, then consolidated into a pro-CPSU (Moscow) party and an independent ECP. As the ECP waned, other political movements, groupings, and parties moved to fill the vacuum. The first and most important was the Estonian Popular Front, established in April 1988 with its own platform, leadership, and broad constituency. The Greens and the dissident-led Estonian National Independence Party soon followed. By 1989, the political spectrum widened and new parties were formed and reformed almost daily. A number of changes in the republic's government brought about by political advances late in the 1980s played a major role in forming a legal framework for political change. This involved the republic's Supreme Soviet being transformed into an authentic regional law-making body. This relatively conservative legislature managed to pass a number of laws, notably a package of laws that addressed the most sensitive ethnic concerns. These laws included the early declaration of sovereignty (November 1988); a law on economic independence (May 1989) confirmed by the U.S.S.R. Supreme Soviet that November; a language law making Estonian the official language (January 1989); and local and republic election laws stipulating residency requirements for voting and candidacy (August, November 1989). Although not all non-Estonians supported full independence, they were divided in their goals for the republic. In March 1990, some 18% of Russian speakers supported the idea of a fully independent Estonia, up from 7% the previous autumn, and only a small group of Estonians were opposed to full independence early in 1990. Estonia held free elections for the 105-member Supreme Council on March 18, 1990. All residents of Estonia were eligible to participate in the elections, including the approximately 50,000 Soviet troops stationed there. The Popular Front coalition, composed of leftist and centrist parties and led by former teacher Edgar Savisaar, won a parliamentary majority. Despite the emergence of the new lawmaking body, an alternative legislature developed in Estonia. In February 1990, a body known as the Congress of Estonia was elected in unauthorized, unofficial elections. Supporters of the Congress argued that the interwar republic continued to exist, since Estonia was forcibly annexed by the U.S.S.R., so only citizens of that republic and their descendants could decide the future of Estonia. Through a strict, non-confrontational policy in pursuing independence, Estonia managed to avoid the violence which Latvia and Lithuania incurred in the bloody January 1991 crackdowns and in the border customs-post guard murders that summer. During the August coup in the U.S.S.R., Estonia was able to maintain constant operation and control of its telecommunications facilities, thereby offering the West a clear view into the latest coup developments and serving as a conduit for swift Western support and recognition of Estonia's redeclaration of independence on August 21. Following Europe's lead, the U.S. formally reestablished diplomatic relations with Estonia on September 2, and the U.S.S.R. Supreme Soviet offered recognition on September 6. During the subsequent cold winter which compounded Estonia's economic restructuring problems, Prime Minister Edgar Savisaar demanded emergency powers to deal with the economic and fuel crises. A subsequent no-confidence vote by the Supreme Council caused the Popular Front leader to resign, and a new government led by former Transportation Minister Tiit Vahi took office. On July 26, Estonian President Meri and Russian President Yeltsin signed an agreement in Moscow calling for the withdrawal of Russian troops by August 31, 1994. Slightly more than 2,000 such troops remain in Estonia. An agreement was also signed regarding social guarantees of Russian military pensioners. Disposition of the inactive nuclear submarine training reactor facility at Paldiski remains to be resolved within the near future. GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS On June 28, 1992, Estonian voters approved the constitutional assembly's draft constitution and implementation act, which established a parliamentary government with a president as chief of state and with a government headed by a prime minister. The Riigikogu, a unicameral legislative body, is the highest organ of state authority. It initiates and approves legislation sponsored by the prime minister. The prime minister has full responsibility and control over his cabinet. Free and fair parliamentary and presidential elections were held on September 20, 1992, the first in Estonia in more than 50 years. Approximately 68% of the country's 637,000 registered voters cast ballots, and 10% of the Russian population also were eligible to vote. The leading presidential contenders, President Ruutel (43% of the popular vote) and former Foreign Minister Lennart Meri (29% of the vote), faced a secret parliamentary vote to determine the winner. Ruutel's former association with the ruling Communist Party probably helped Meri win on the first ballot. Meri chose 32-year- old historian and Christian Democratic Party founder Mart Laar as Prime Minister. In February 1992, parliament renewed Estonia's liberal 1938 citizenship law, which also provides equal civil protection to resident aliens. Dual citizenship is allowed for Estonians and their families who fled the Soviet occupation. Accordingly, those who were citizens in 1940 are citizens now. Those who arrived after the occupation began can become citizens following a two-year residence retroactive to March 30, 1990, and demonstration of a 1500-word comprehension of Estonian. Most non-citizen ethnic Slavs (35% of the populace) became eligible for naturalization in March 1993, and the government funds Estonian language training. In nationwide municipal elections held on October 17, 1993, opposition party and ethnic Russian candidates gained a majority in most areas, especially in Tallinn and the northeast. National Security Estonia's defense system is based upon the Swedish-Finnish concept of a rapid response force composed of a mobilization base and a small group of career professionals. The army consists of three battalions of 714 troops each, and there is a mandatory one-year draft period of active duty. Alternative conscription for 18 months for conscientious objectors is available. There are no plans for a navy, and Estonia is as yet financially unable to fulfill plans for an air force. Border guards fall under the interior ministry's supervision. Comprised of 250-300 troops each, the seven border guard districts, including a "coast guard," are responsible for border protection and passport and customs duties, as well as smuggling and drug trafficking interdiction. A volunteer paramilitary organization (Kaitseliit) serves as a type of national guard. Principal Government Officials President--Lennart Meri Prime Minister--Mart Laar Minister of Foreign Affairs--Juri Luik Estonia maintains an embassy in the United States at 1030 15th Street, NW, Suite 1000, Washington, DC 20005 (tel: 202-789-0320). It operates a consulate at 630 Fifth Ave., Suite 2415, New York, NY 10020 (tel: 212-247-7634). ECONOMY Until 1920, Estonian agriculture consisted of native peasants working large feudal-type estates held by ethnic German landlords. In previous decades, centralized czarist rule had contributed a rather large industrial sector dominated by the world's largest cotton mill, then a ruined postwar economy and an inflated ruble currency. By the 1930s, however, Estonia entirely transformed its economy, despite considerable hardship, dislocation, and unemployment. Compensating the German landowners for their holdings, the government confiscated the estates and divided them into small farms which subsequently formed the basis of Estonian prosperity. By 1929, a stable currency, the kroon (or crown), was established, and by 1939, Estonia's living standard compared well with Sweden's. Trade focused on the local market and the West, particularly Germany and the United Kingdom. Only 3% of all commerce was with the U.S.S.R. The U.S.S.R.'s forcible annexation of Estonia in 1940 and the ensuing Nazi and Soviet destruction during World War II crippled the Estonian economy. Postwar Sovietization of life continued with the integration of Estonia's economy and industry into the U.S.S.R.'s centrally planned structure. More than 56% of Estonian farms were collectivized in April 1949 alone. Moscow expanded on those Estonian industries which had locally available raw materials, such as oil-shale mining and phosphorites. As a laboratory for economic experiments, especially in industrial management techniques, Estonia enjoyed more success and greater prosperity than other regions under Soviet rule. As the author of the then-radical "Self-Accounting Estonia" plan in 1988, Prime Minister Savisaar succeeded by early 1992 in freeing most prices and encouraging privatization and foreign investment far earlier than other former Soviet bloc countries. This experimentation with Western capitalism has promoted Estonia's clear advantage in reorienting to Western markets and business practice. With independence, the transitional government styled Estonia as the gateway between East and West and aggressively pursued trade reform and economic integration with the West. Estonia has passed bankruptcy, trademark, copyright, and investment laws and has negotiated trade and investment agreements with many Western countries to attract foreign businesses and joint ventures, which now number more than 2,000 in Estonia. Estonia's major trading partners are the Nordic countries, while Russia now accounts for only one-fourth of all trade. Estonia is reliant on an inefficient, over-industrialized economy. The country supplies 60% of its own energy converted from peat, wood, hydroelectric plants, and environmentally polluting oil shale. Estonia has no domestic capacity to refine crude oil and depends heavily on Russian and Belarusian petroleum exports. Fishing and shipbuilding are key industries, while the agricultural sector is small but largely self-sufficient. The ice-free port of Muuga, near Tallinn, is an underused modern facility with good transshipment capability, a high-capacity grain elevator, chilled/frozen storage, and newly completed oil tanker off-loading capabilities. As a new member, Estonia received critical restructuring loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank, as well as from G-24 nations, in order to remedy critical energy, medicinal, and feed grain shortages and financial shortfalls caused by the disruption of traditional Soviet markets. By spring 1992, Estonia ! basically decontrolled prices; tha t year, industrial production fell 40%. Spurred by an acute ruble shortage, high inflation, and a desire for national financial independence, Estonia reintroduced the kroon in June 1992. Pegged to the German mark and freely convertible, the kroon is backed by more than $262 million in gold and timber reserves. Projected 1994 inflation is 30%. Fear of massive unemployment among the largely urban Russian work force had delayed privatization of inefficient factories, and the issue of compensation or restitution to pre-1940 property owners remains contentious. However, the Laar administration is showing much toughness and promise on economic reform and privatization. Nearly 42,000 private businesses are now registered in Estonia, and another 10,000 businesses are expected in 1994. GDP growth has reached 6.4% in 1994--the first positive growth rate in one of the former Soviet bloc countries and one of the world's highest rates. A national privatization agency, patterned after Germany's Treuhandan-stalt, handles privatization/reorganization of state property. Eighty percent of small to medium-sized enterprises are now privately owned, and nearly 80,000 new jobs have been created. Nearly one-third of the present budget, $81 million, remains frozen in the defunct Soviet foreign trade bank, which has contributed to! the insolvency of several banks. With a balanced budget for the past two years, the government refuses to weaken its strong fiscal reputation and has allowed the banks to fold or be merged into the national bank. Estonia plans GATT membership in 1994 and, with practically no agricultural subsidies and few trade restrictions, it actively seeks EU membership by the year 2000. Estonia ratified a free trade agreement with the EU in July. FOREIGN RELATIONS Estonia joined the United Nations on September 18, 1991, and is a signatory to a number of UN organizations and other international agreements. It also is a member of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, Partnership for Peace, the North Atlantic Cooperation Council, and the Council of Europe. Estonia is unaffiliated directly with any political alliance but welcomes further cooperation and integration with NATO, the EU, and other Western organizations. Estonia maintains embassies in the United States, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Germany, Belgium, the United Kingdom, France, and Russia. It operates missions in Lithuania, Latvia, to the United Nations, and has a consulate general in Toronto, Canada. Honorary consuls are located in Austria, Switzerland, Australia, and Seattle. The United States established diplomatic relations with Estonia on July 28, 1922. U.S. representation accredited to Estonia served from the U.S. legation in Riga, Latvia, until June 30, 1930, when a legation was established with a non-resident minister. The Soviet invasion forced the closure of the legation in Tallinn on September 5, 1940, but Estonian representation in the United States has continued uninterrupted for more than 70 years. The U.S. never recognized the forcible incorporation of Estonia into the U.S.S.R. and views the present Government of Estonia as a legal continuation of the interwar republic. Estonia has enjoyed most-favored-nation (MFN) treatment with the U.S. since December 1991. In 1991-92, it received approximately $6 million annually in humanitarian and medical aid, technical assistance, and professional training and about $38 million in feed grain credits from the U.S. since 1991. In 1993, Estonian trade with the United States amounted to $20 m! illion in exports and $54 million in imports, the latter being mainly agricultural commodities under concessional programs. U.S. investment, consisting of about 145 firms, makes up $20 million of $185 million in foreign investment in Estonia. Principal U.S. Embassy Officials Charge d'affaires--Keith Smith Political Officer--Elo-Kai Ojamaa Economic Officer--Ingrid Kollist Administrative Officer--David Buss Consular Officer--Robin Haase AID Director--Adrian deGraffenreid Public Affairs Officer--Victoria Middleton The U.S. embassy in Estonia is located at Kentmanni 20, Tallinn (tel. 372-6-312-021/4). TRAVEL NOTES Customs: Estonia does not require visas for American, Canadian, or British citizens. Visitors are encouraged to register at the U.S. Embassy. Hard currency exceeding 1,000 DM ($630) must be declared upon entry; foreigners need not declare hard currency exports less than this sum but may not export more currency than that declared upon arrival. Articles with a total value of less than 5,000 kroons ($380), either already declared or purchased in Estonia, are duty-free upon departure. A 100% export duty exists on items of greater total value, and 10-100% export duties can be levied on tobacco, alcohol, gasoline, precious metals and jewelry, furs, and cultural objects. Climate and clothing: Tallinn and the coast are temperate, with pleasant, cool summers and damp winters; eastern Estonia is continental, with warmer summers and harsher winters. Health: Medical care does not meet Western standards. There are severe shortages of basic medical supplies, including disposable needles, anesthetics, and antibiotics. Raw fruits and vegetables are safe to eat, and the water is potable. Heat and hot water are readily available. Transportation: Several international airlines, including SAS, Finnair and Estonia Airlines, provide service between European cities and Tallinn Airport. Train service is available via Moscow, St. Petersburg and Warsaw/Frankfurt, and a bus line connects the Baltic capitals with Warsaw. Bus and taxi service within the capital and its environs is good. Excellent Tallinn-Helsinki ferry links exist year-round. Taxis are inexpensive and available at stands or may be ordered by phone. Rental cars are available, and gasoline prices are at market rates. Telecommunications: Improved telephone and telegraph services are readily available at standard international rates. Tallinn is 7 hours ahead of eastern standard time. Work week: Most stores and shops are closed on Sunday, open Monday-Friday from 10:00am - 6:00 pm and on Saturday from 9:00am - 1:00pm. The U.S. embassy is closed on U.S. federal holidays. Currency, Weights and Measures: The freely convertible kroon is pegged to 1/8 the value of the German deutschmark. Traveler's checks and major credit cards can be used at most banks and hotels. Estonia uses the metric system and 220v current. Further Information These titles are provided as a general indication of the material published on this country. The Department of State does not endorse unofficial publications. Estonia 1993: A Reference Book. Tallinn: Estonian Encyclopedia Publishers, 1993. Kreutzwald, F.R., comp. Kalevipoeg, An Ancient Estonian Tale. Moorestown, NJ: Symposia Press, 1982. Magi, Arvo. Estonian Literature. Stockholm: Baltic Humanitarian Association, 1968. Parming, Marju Rink, and Tonu Parming. A Bibliography of English-Language Sources on Estonia: Periodicals, Bibliographies, Pamphlets, and Books. New York: Estonian Learned Society in America, 1974. Parming, Tonu. The Collapse of Liberal Democracy and the Rise of Authoritarianism in Estonia. London: Sage Publications, 1975. Parming, Tonu, and Elmar Jarvesoo, eds. A Case Study of a Soviet Republic: The Estonian SSR. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1978. Rank, Gustav. Old Estonia: The People and Culture, translated by Betty Oinas and Felix Oinas. Bloomington: Indiana University's Uralic and Altaic Series, vol. 128, 1976. Raun, Toivo U. Estonia and the Estonians, 2nd edition. Stanford, CA: Hoover Institution Press, 1991. Rikken, Mari-Ann, and Michael Tarm, eds. Documents from Estonia: Articles, Speeches, Resolutions, Letters, Editorials, Interviews Concerning Recent Developments, two volumes. New York, 1990. Rodgers, Mary M., and Tom Streissguth, eds. Estonia: Then and Now. Minneapolis: Lerner Publications Company, 1992. Uustalu, Evald. History of the Estonian People. London: Boreas Publishing, 1952. Williams, Roger, ed. Baltic States: Insight Guides. Boston: Houghton-Mifflin Company, 1993. For information on economic trends, commercial development, production, trade regulations, and tariff rates, contact the International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, Washington, DC 20230 at (202)482-4915, or any Commerce Department district office. For information on business opportunities, call the Commerce Department's East European Business Information Center at (202) 482-2645. Published by the United States Department of State -- Bureau of Public Affairs -- Office of Public Communication -- Washington, DC August 1994 -- Managing Editor: Peter A. Knecht -- Editor: Peter Freeman Department of State Publication 10194 -- Background Notes Series -For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402.