Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07TALLINN64
2007-01-30 16:19:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Tallinn
Cable title:  

SCENESETTER FOR EUR DAS DICARLO VISIT TO

Tags:  OTRA PREL EN 
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VZCZCXYZ0698
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHTL #0064/01 0301619
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 301619Z JAN 07
FM AMEMBASSY TALLINN
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 9468
UNCLAS TALLINN 000064 

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/NB KAYE LEE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OTRA PREL EN
SUBJECT: SCENESETTER FOR EUR DAS DICARLO VISIT TO
TALLINN, FEBRUARY 5-6

REF: A) 06 TALLINN 1114 B) TALLINN 0002

UNCLAS TALLINN 000064

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/NB KAYE LEE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OTRA PREL EN
SUBJECT: SCENESETTER FOR EUR DAS DICARLO VISIT TO
TALLINN, FEBRUARY 5-6

REF: A) 06 TALLINN 1114 B) TALLINN 0002


1. (U) Welcome to Tallinn. Your visit will bring you
to one of our most supportive allies in Europe. Your
arrival comes on the heels of the President's historic
visit to Estonia last November, and amidst fervent
campaigning for Estonia's parliamentary elections in
early March.


2. (SBU) Foreign Affairs Minister Urmas Paet and
Defense Minister Jurgen Ligi will host the Adriatic-
Baltic-Atlantic Ministerial (A3B3) on February 5-6 at
the Radisson Hotel in Tallinn. Prime Minister Andrus
Ansip will also host a lunch for conference attendees.
Confirmed participants include Foreign Ministers from
Albania, Croatia, Macedonia, Bosnia, Montenegro, and
Lithuania and Defense Ministers from Albania, Croatia,
Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Lithuania. The
conference agenda includes discussions on:

-- Regional security and international operations;

-- The role of education in defense transformation;

-- Maintaining momentum after the Riga NATO Summit;

-- Tasks and challenges associated with defense
transformation; and

-- NATO expansion.

Estonia: A Staunch NATO Ally
--------------


3. (U) Estonia consistently supports U.S. positions
within NATO. Despite the small size of its military,
it is contributing almost 5% of its deployable forces
to NATO operations in Afghanistan and Kosovo, as well
as Operation Iraqi Freedom and EUFOR-ALTHEA, the
European Union peacekeeping force in Bosnia. Since
joining NATO in 2004, Estonia has made significant
strides in transforming its own military into an
effective and experienced contributor to NATO and
other international military operations. Unlike some
NATO allies which are cutting back on defense
spending, the GOE is on track to meet its NATO
commitment of devoting 2 percent of its GDP to defense
(currently at 1.83%). Public support for NATO is
strong in Estonia: surveys consistently show that more
than 70% of the public supports NATO membership.


4. (U) Estonia has prioritized its mission in
Afghanistan as its most significant contribution to
the global war on terror (GWOT). Estonian soldiers
participate in the UK-led Provincial Reconstruction
Team (PRT) in Helmand Province in the south. This is

the epicenter of Afghanistan's opium production and
has recently seen a strong resurgence of Taliban
activity. In 2006, the GOE increased its troop
contribution to 130 and posted a diplomat to Helmand
to oversee development assistance projects. Since
2002, Estonia has donated USD 187,631 in humanitarian
assistance to Afghanistan. For 2007, it has pledged
to provide an additional USD 91,000 worth of hospital
equipment to the children's ward of the central
Helmand hospital.


5. (SBU) Estonia has soldiers in Bosnia, participating
in an EU-peacekeeping operation, as well as in Kosovo
in a NATO-led operation. In Bosnia, Estonia recently
increased its troop contribution to 29 soldiers for
EURFOR-ALTHEA. In Kosovo, Estonia had a company size
infantry unit participating in a Danish-led
peacekeeping force in 2006. However, with Afghanistan
deemed a higher priority, the number of troops was
reduced to 25, where they serve in Pristina as
military police.


6. (U) Estonia is a vocal supporter of NATO expansion.
Prime Minister Ansip and Foreign Minister Paet
regularly speak out on the importance of bringing
Balkan and Eastern European countries into NATO in
order to cement democratic and free-market reforms
there. Estonia's own experience creating a booming
economy and vibrant democracy after re-independence
has given it immense credibility in promoting
transformational diplomacy. Despite its commitment to
NATO expansion, Estonia has always made it clear that
no aspirant country should be given a "free ride" when
it comes to fulfilling membership requirements.

President Toomas Hendrik Ilves, Prime Minister Ansip,
and Foreign Minister Paet recently reiterated this
message in meetings with Ukrainian President, Viktor
Yanukovych, and Georgian President, Mikheil
Saakashvili (Ref A and B).

A Democracy Promoter
--------------


7. (U) The GOE has provided significant technical
assistance to Georgia, Ukraine, and the Balkans to aid
in these governments' political, military and economic
reforms. The GOE annually sponsors Georgian,
Ukrainian and Balkan officers and civilians to study
at the Baltic Defense College. The GOE also provides
training through its Public Service Academy and School
of Diplomacy for Ukrainian, Georgian, and Moldovan
diplomats, civil servants, law enforcement, and
customs agents.


8. (U) Estonia has also conducted cooperation and
development assistance projects in the Balkans and
Adriatic. Estonia's outreach has focused on IT,
tourism, market reforms, and institution building
through project partnerships. Since 2000, Estonia has
engaged in the following outreach projects:

- organized a conference in Macedonia on how to use EU
structural funds (2005);

- provided IT and communications training through its
e-Governance Academy for civil servants from Albania,
Bosnia, Macedonia, Serbia, and Montenegro (2004);

- organized conference on Ecotourism to promote cross
border cooperation for government officials from
Albania, Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia, and Montenegro
(2004);

- provided technical assistance for WTO membership on
agriculture reform for government officials from
Albania, Macedonia, Serbia, and Montenegro (2003);

- provided technical assistance for juridical and
legal curriculum development for judges from Albania
(2003);

- funded cultural and education exchanges between
Estonian and Bosnian students (2001); and

- hosted media self-regulation training for members of
the Press Council of Bosnia (2000).

Iraq: Staying the Course
--------------


9. (U) The GOE has been a committed partner in Iraq.
Currently, 38 Estonian soldiers serve shoulder-to-
shoulder with U.S. 1st Brigade Combat Team outside of
Baghdad, where they engage in some of the toughest
counterinsurgency missions (in which Estonians have
suffered 18 casualties, including 2 killed). U.S.
commanders on the ground have consistently praised
Estonian soldiers for their skill, professionalism,
and valuable contributions to a critical mission. In
late December 2006, Estonia's parliament voted to
renew the GOE's Iraq mission mandate for an additional
year, despite a low level of public support.
Additionally, the combination of a tight labor market,
a booming economy, and continued emigration of
Estonian workers to higher wage EU member states has
created military staffing shortages, which have placed
an additional strain on operations. While it is
unlikely that the March Parliamentary elections will
result in a significant change in Estonia's policy
towards Iraq, maintaining political support for Iraq
will be a serious challenge in the medium- to long-
term.

Bios of Key Estonian Interlocutors
--------------


10. (U) Prime Minister Andrus Ansip was born in Tartu,
Estonia's second largest city, in 1956. Ansip is the
leader of the Estonian Reform Party, a pro-free market
and trans-Atlanticist party. After a career in
banking and finance, Ansip entered politics in 1998 as
mayor of Tartu. In 2004, he became the head of the
Reform Party and the Minister of Economy. Ansip
became Prime Minister in April 2005, when the current

three-party coalition was formed. He is running for
election to Parliament and is his party's candidate
for Prime Minister. Ansip speaks English, German, and
Russian.


11. (U) Foreign Minister Urmas Paet was born on April
20, 1974, in Tallinn. Like PM Ansip, Paet is a member
of the Reform Party. Prior to becoming a politician,
Paet worked in the media. In March 2003, he was
elected to parliament (representing a district in
Tallinn). Paet served as Minister of Culture before
becoming Foreign Minister in 2005. Paet is a leading
Reform candidate in the elections. He speaks Russian,
English, German and Finnish.


12. (U) Defense Minister Jurgen Ligi was born in Tartu
in 1959. Like Ansip and Paet, Ligi is also a member
of the Reform Party and is running for election to
Parliament. Prior to politics, Ligi was an economist
and an economic advisor in local government. He was
elected to parliament in 1995 and has been Minister of
Defense since October 2005. Ligi speaks English,
Finnish, and Russian.


13. (SBU) These three men are among the strongest and
most vocal supporters of NATO and Estonia's active
role in the GWOT. They regularly articulate a moral
case to the public for Estonia's participation in NATO
and foreign operations -- Estonia's obligation to repay
its "debt" for the external support it received after
re-independence. They are also strong advocates for
Estonia's efforts to promote democracy and market
reform abroad.

GOLDSTEIN