VZCZCXRO2217
OO RUEHAG RUEHDF RUEHIK RUEHLZ RUEHROV
DE RUEHTL #0363/01 2970937
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 230937Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY TALLINN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0867
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
INFO RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 TALLINN 000363 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DHS FOR SECRETARY CHERTOFF FROM AMBASSADOR PHILLIPS 
DEPT FOR CA/VO/F/P ABIGAIL RUPP, BRENDA GREWE 
DEPT FOR EUR/PGI IVAN WEINSTEIN 
DHS FOR ALLISON BOYD, MARC FREY, CLAYTON SANDERSON, CHRIS 
MITARAI, MARK KOUMANS 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: OVIP PREL CVIS AMGT ASEC AFIN EN
SUBJECT: ESTONIA: SCENESETTER FOR VISIT OF DHS SECRETARY 
CHERTOFF 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary.  Mr. Secretary - welcome to Estonia!  Your 
October 29 visit to Tallinn is a significant milestone in our 
bilateral relationship with Estonia, and will be seen here as 
the fulfillment of the President's promise of Visa Waiver 
Program (VWP) membership made during his 2006 visit to Tallinn. 
Accession to VWP has been a long-standing priority for the 
Government of Estonia (GOE), and there is keen interest 
regarding the announcement of the first date on which travel may 
commence under the program.  While there are just over 110,000 
Russian-speaking "stateless" residents of Estonia who will not 
be able to participate in VWP, the GOE hopes that VWP will 
provide another incentive for these non-citizens to naturalize. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) A member of NATO and the EU since 2004, Estonia is a 
steadfast ally on all fronts.  Estonian forces participate 
actively in international military operations including Iraq, 
Afghanistan and Kosovo.  Estonia relies on NATO guarantees for 
its security, particularly in light of the Russian invasion of 
Georgia and the often tense nature of Estonian-Russian 
relations.  Estonia is a role model for democratic reform and 
development in former Soviet states (and beyond), and has taken 
on a leadership role in promoting international cooperation on 
cyber-security.  Economically, Estonia's growth has slowed 
significantly in the past 12 months and unemployment is creeping 
up.  The Estonian banking sector has weathered the global 
financial crisis -- so far.  Estonia joined the Schengen area in 
December, 2007.  End Summary. 
 
STRONG BILATERAL TIES 
 
¶3.  (SBU) The United States and Estonia are strong allies and 
partners.  Appreciation for U.S. non-recognition of the Soviet 
occupation of Estonia remains an important source of good will 
towards the United States.  In April 2007, the USG voiced strong 
public support for Estonia during riots, cyber attacks and 
deteriorating relations with Russia after the GOE decided to 
relocate a Soviet era memorial away from the center of Tallinn. 
One major challenge for our public diplomacy efforts, however, 
remains to engage the next generation of Estonians to ensure 
that U.S. - Estonian relations remain strong for the long term. 
 
IN THE HOMESTRETCH FOR VWP 
 
¶4. (SBU) VWP has long been a priority for the GOE.  Estonian 
officials raise the issue at every senior bilateral meeting. 
GOE officials and the traveling public have become increasingly 
anxious to know when VWP travel may begin, especially since 
Estonia completed all substantive steps for participation in the 
program with the signing last month of the Agreement on 
Enhancing Cooperation on Preventing and Combating Serious Crime 
(PCSC) in Washington.  The President's announcement of VWP 
expansion on 17 October was well-received and widely-covered in 
Estonia. 
 
¶5.  (U) The Embassy has engaged in considerable outreach to 
ensure that Estonian travelers are aware of the biometric 
passport requirement and the ESTA requirement.  We have also 
worked to remind the many Russian passport holders and Estonian 
"gray" (stateless) travel document holders that only Estonian 
citizens will be able to participate in the program.  The GOE 
has made a number of statements recently that VWP could provide 
another incentive for stateless Estonians to consider pursuing 
naturalization as Estonian citizens. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Your announcement of the VWP travel date, the 
immediate availability of ESTA to Estonian citizens, as well as 
soon-to-be-announced inclusion of Estonian as an available 
language on the ESTA website, are anxiously awaited and will be 
well-received.  Questions received by the Embassy following the 
President's announcement of VWP expansion on 17 October suggest 
that the Estonian public is still confused about some aspects of 
the program.  It would be particularly helpful for you to 
emphasize the following during any press interviews: 
 
(1) that only Estonian citizens holding biometric passports are 
eligible to travel visa free (i.e., only Estonian passports 
issued after 22 May 2007), 
 
(2) that ESTA requires substantially the same information as 
required on Form I-94W, rather than the more substantial amount 
of information required from visa applicants, and 
 
(3) that those who already hold valid U.S. visas need not comply 
 
TALLINN 00000363  002 OF 004 
 
 
with ESTA and biometric passport requirements. 
 
SCHENGEN 
 
¶7. (SBU) Estonia joined the Schengen Area on December 21, 2007, 
abolishing passport controls for intra-Schengen flights, as well 
as land and maritime border control at ports of entry connecting 
to other Area members (in this case land borders with Latvia, 
and maritime connections with Finland and Sweden).  The GOE 
maintains a strict regime of checkpoints on its Eastern border 
with Russia and has retained border checks at the airport for 
travelers arriving from non-Schengen states.  Estonia received 
77 million Euros in Schengen Facility aid to improve 
surveillance capacity on the Russian and sea borders, and to 
integrate its entry-control and visa systems with the Schengen 
Information System (SIS), a common lookout and records database. 
 
WAR ON TERROR 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Estonia is a strong supporter of the U.S. position in 
the War on Terror.  Estonian troops participate in NATO 
operations (in Afghanistan and Kosovo), EU operations (the EU's 
Nordic Battle Group), Operation Enduring Freedom in Iraq and 
other missions (including the UN mission in Lebanon).  A company 
of 140 Estonian soldiers is deployed to the southern province of 
Helmand (the epicenter of Afghanistan's opium production and a 
stronghold for the Taliban).  In Iraq, Estonian soldiers are 
embedded with U.S. troops in some of the toughest counter- 
insurgency operations outside of Baghdad.  To date, five 
Estonian soldiers have been killed, and 45 wounded, in Iraq and 
Afghanistan.  The GOE is on track to meet its NATO commitment of 
devoting 2 percent of its GDP to defense spending by 2010 
(currently at approximately 1.7 percent) and is a vocal 
supporter of NATO enlargement, particularly in light of the 
Russian invasion of Georgia. 
 
REGIONAL DEMOCRACY PROMOTION 
 
¶9.  (U) Estonia's experience of transforming itself from a 
Soviet-occupied country into a healthy democracy with a strong 
economy has given it immense credibility in promoting democracy 
and transformational diplomacy in the region.  The GOE has 
provided training in law enforcement, judicial reform, freedom 
of the press, democracy building, economic and market reforms 
and IT to civil servants and military personnel from the 
Balkans, Georgia, Moldova and the Ukraine. 
 
RELATIONS WITH RUSSIA 
 
¶10.  (SBU) Estonia's relationship with Russia is difficult and 
complicated following nearly 50 years of Soviet occupation, and 
has become even more so following Russia's invasion of Georgia 
in August.  Estonia has strongly supported Georgia's reform 
process.  Senior GOE officials travel regularly to Georgia and 
about one-third of Estonia's bilateral assistance budget is 
spent in this country.  Former Prime Minister Mart Laar serves 
as a personal advisor to Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili 
on political and economic reform.  Shortly following the Russian 
invasion, Estonian President Ilves and Foreign Minister Paet 
made high-profile visits to Georgia to show their solidarity 
with the Georgian government and people.  Estonians view the 
Russian invasion of Georgia with alarm, given the large number 
of Russian citizens and ethnic Russians living in Estonia, and 
are keenly looking to the security guarantees of Article V of 
NATO. 
 
¶11.  (SBU) While Russia and Estonia continue to share trade and 
investment ties, they have not been able to conclude a border 
treaty.  Depending on the political climate and bureaucratic 
inefficiencies, hundreds of trucks crossing from Estonia into 
Russia may encounter delays of up to one week.  Estonia's 
decision to relocate a Soviet era monument (the Bronze Soldier) 
was followed by riots of ethnic Russians in Tallinn in April 
¶2007.  Following the riots, Russia put heavy economic and 
diplomatic pressure on Estonia - including refusing to disperse 
a mob outside the Estonian Embassy in Moscow for several days, 
limiting rail and truck traffic across the border and 
encouraging a boycott of Estonian goods.  Rail traffic (oil, 
coal, wood and other materials) is still down significantly, 
reducing Estonia's transit revenues and complicating supply 
lines for Estonian companies. 
 
¶12.  (SBU) Ethnic Russians make up approximately 25 percent of 
 
TALLINN 00000363  003 OF 004 
 
 
the population of Estonia.  Some ethnic Russians hold Estonian 
passports, while others hold either Russian passports or "gray" 
(stateless) passports issued by the Estonian government.  Russia 
has frequently complained about GOE treatment of its Russian 
speaking minority.  However, until the Bronze Soldier riots, 
Estonia's efforts to integrate its minority population were 
viewed as a model for the region.  While Estonia can still point 
to significant accomplishments of its integration strategy, the 
riots revealed that deep fissures remain between ethnic Russians 
and Estonians living in Estonia.  The GOE, which has 
traditionally engaged in language-based integration programs, 
has launched a new strategy that focuses not only on language 
and citizenship issues, but also on society building and 
cultural understanding among Estonians of all ethnicities. 
 
CYBER WARFARE 
 
¶13. (SBU) In April/May 2007 (following the Bronze Soldier 
riots), cyber attacks targeted government and private sector 
websites in Estonia.  The attacks, which lasted for 
approximately one month and ranged from simple spam postings to 
coordinated DDOS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks, caused 
severe service disruptions to websites, servers and routers 
linked to government, banking, media and other resources.  These 
highly coordinated cyber attacks captured widespread 
international media attention.  The United States and NATO 
quickly sent experts to Tallinn.  Since the attacks, the GOE has 
taken a leadership role on cyber security within NATO, the 
European Union (EU) and other organizations, becoming an 
important player in international cooperation on cyber defense. 
Estonia sent advisers to Georgia following a cyber attacks that 
coincided with Russia's invasion of that country.  The GOE is 
working with NATO to make its national Cooperative Cyber Defense 
Center (CCD) a NATO Center of Excellence (COE).  In November, 
2007, the United States was the first country to send a 
representative to the CCD, although we are not an official 
"Sponsoring Nation" yet. 
 
ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE 
 
¶14.  (U) Until recently, Estonia's economy was growing at 7-11 
percent per year.  This year, however, economic growth has 
slowed to almost zero.  The state budget has been in surplus 
since 2001, but falling tax receipts have translated into 
painful budget and personnel cuts for the GOE.  So far, the 
Estonian banking sector, which is controlled by Scandinavian 
banks, has weathered the global financial crisis well.  The 
national currency, the Kroon, is pegged to the Euro, but 
inflation will keep Estonia from joining the Euro zone before 
¶2012. 
 
¶15.  (SBU) The United States is the eighth-largest foreign 
direct investor; U.S. direct investment accounts for less than 
2.5 percent of total FDI.  Estonia is known internationally for 
its highly developed IT sector and widespread use of technology 
in government and daily life.  Internet usage in Estonia is over 
60 percent, and online banking is upwards of 80 percent - both 
the highest in Europe.  Cabinet ministers work on the basis of 
e-government and Estonia was the first country in the world to 
offer e-voting in a nationwide election.  Large domestic oil 
shale reserves have allowed Estonia to remain relatively 
independent of Russian energy supplies, although Estonia imports 
all of the natural gas it uses from Russia. 
 
MEDIA ENVIRONMENT 
 
¶16.  (U) The Estonian media have shown considerable interest in 
Estonia's progress towards joining the Visa Waiver Program 
(VWP).  Reports are typically neutral and reasonably well- 
informed but some outlets have been critical and/or confused 
about the new security requirements and ESTA.  In addition to 
Embassy outreach on VWP, the GOE has remained on message and 
extremely knowledgeable in public statements about the mechanics 
of VWP, including ESTA. 
 
¶17.  (SBU) The media in Estonia are ranked among the most free 
in the world.  The 2008 Reporters Without Borders press freedom 
index ranked Estonia as the fourth most free country. 
Competition and variety among print, television, radio, and 
Internet sources is robust in both Estonian- and Russian- 
language formats.  Media resources in Estonia are limited and 
coverage is generally restricted to local and regional issues 
and to international issues that have a direct bearing on 
 
TALLINN 00000363  004 OF 004 
 
 
Estonia.  Television is the most popular source of news in 
Estonia, but newspapers still play an important role in 
providing serious news as well as in-depth commentary.  Internet 
penetration is very high, particularly among young Estonians, 
although much of the content is repeated from the more 
traditional media outlets.  Tabloid-style papers are very 
popular, and while they often adhere to a lower standard of 
journalism, they do provide a reasonable level of reporting on 
serious news.  One area of concern is that television and radio 
broadcasts originating in Russia are a leading source of news 
for many of Estonia's Russian-language speakers, particularly in 
northeastern Estonia, where Russian-origin television broadcasts 
can be picked up by antenna.  The Estonian Government is 
considering expanding the amount of Russian-language television 
programming available to Estonia's Russian-language speakers in 
order to offer more balanced and neutral news coverage. 
 
¶18.  (U) Your visit will be a highlight for the whole year. 
Again, I welcome you to Estonia, and look forward to seeing you 
in Tallinn on October 29. 
 
PHILLIPS