Estonia

After centuries of Swedish and Russian rule, Estonia attained independence in 1918. Forcibly incorporated into the USSR in 1940, it regained its freedom in 1991 with the collapse of the Soviet Union. Since the last Russian troops left in 1994, Estonia has been free to promote economic and political ties with Western Europe.

• air heavily polluted with sulfur dioxide from oil-shale burning power plants in northeast;
• contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products, chemicals at former Soviet military bases;
• Estonia has more than 1,400 natural and manmade lakes, the smaller of which in agricultural areas are heavily affected by organic waste;
• coastal sea water is polluted in many locations

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ship Pollution, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:

Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol

0-14 years:

18% (male 129,204; female 124,269)

15-64 years:

68% (male 466,960; female 503,233)

65 years and over:

14% (male 67,781; female 140,024) (2000 est.)

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:

1.04 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

0.93 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.48 male(s)/female

total population:

0.87 male(s)/female (2000 est.)

noun:

Estonian(s)

adjective:

Estonian

conventional long form:

Republic of Estonia

conventional short form:

Estonia

local long form:

Eesti Vabariik

local short form:

Eesti

former:

Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic

chief of state:

President Lennart MERI (since 5 October 1992)

head of government:

Prime Minister Mart LAAR (since 29 March 1999)

cabinet:

Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister, approved by Parliament

elections:

• president elected by Parliament for a five-year term;
• if he or she does not secure two-thirds of the votes after three rounds of balloting, then an electoral assembly (made up of Parliament plus members of local governments) elects the president, choosing between the two candidates with the largest percentage of votes;
• election last held August-September 1996 (next to be held fall 2001);
• prime minister nominated by the president and approved by Parliament

election results:

• Lennart MERI reelected president by an electoral assembly after Parliament was unable to break a deadlock between MERI and RUUTEL;
• percent of electoral assembly vote - Lennart MERI 61%, Arnold RUUTEL 39%

• Center Party or K [Edgar SAVISAAR, chairman];
• Coalition Party and Rural Union or KMU [Andrus OOVEL, chairman];
• Country People's Party [Arnold RUUTEL];
• Moderates or M [Andres TARAND];
• Reform Party or RE [Siim KALLAS, chairman];
• Union of Pro Patria or Fatherland League (Isamaaliit) [Mart LAAR, chairman];
• United People's Party or UPPE [Viktor ANDREJEV, chairman]

chief of mission:

Ambassador Sven JURGENSON

chancery:

2131 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 588-0101

FAX:

[1] (202) 588-0108

consulate(s) general:

New York

chief of mission:

Ambassador Melissa WELLS

embassy:

Kentmanni 20, Tallinn EE 0001

mailing address:

use embassy street address

telephone:

[372] (6) 312-021

FAX:

[372] (6) 312-025

lowest 10%:

3.2%

highest 10%:

28.5% (1996)

• potatoes, fruits, vegetables;
• livestock and dairy products;
• fish

• krooni (EEK) per US$1 - 15.417 (January 2000), 4.678 (1999), 14.075 (1998), 13.882 (1997), 12.034 (1996), 11.465 (1995);
• note - krooni are tied to the German deutsche mark at a fixed rate of 8 to 1

• foreign investment in the form of joint business ventures greatly improved telephone service;
• Internet services available throughout most of the country;
• about 150,000 unfilled subscriber requests

domestic:

• local - the Ministry of Transport and Communications is expanding cellular telephone services to form rural networks;
• intercity - highly developed fiber-optic backbone (double loop) system presently serving at least 16 major cities (1998)

international:

fiber-optic cables to Finland, Sweden, Latvia, and Russia provide worldwide packet switched service; two international switches are located in Tallinn

total:

1,018 km common carrier lines only; does not include dedicated industrial lines

broad gauge:

1,018 km 1.520-m gauge (132 km electrified) (1995)

total:

49,480 km

paved:

10,935 km (including 75 km of expressways)

unpaved:

38,545 km (1998 est.)

• transshipment point for opiates and cannabis from Southwest Asia and the Caucasus via Russia, cocaine from Latin America to Western Europe and Scandinavia, and synthetic drugs from Western Europe to Scandinavia;
• possible precursor manufacturing and/or trafficking [Country Listing] [ The World Factbook Home]