Estonia marks 98th anniversary of proclamation of Independence

Chisinau, 24 February /MOLDPRES/ - Estonia today marks the Independence Day, proclaimed on 24 February 1918, when this Baltic country declared its independence from the Soviet Union. On 20 August 1991, Estonia regained independence from the same Soviet Union.

It is considered that the Republic of Estonia was founded on 24 February 1918, when the National Salvation Committee in Tallinn made public a manifesto, under which which the independent and democratic republic was proclaimed.

Estonia is a state in the north-east of Europe, placed on the coast of the Baltic Sea between Russia and Latvia, and occupies numerous small islands in the Baltic Sea. The country’s capital is the Tallinn city. Estonia has an area of 45.2 thousand square km and a population of 1.29 million residents; it is one of the most sparsely populated European Union member states.

Estonia has the biggest Gross Domestic Product per capita among all the former republics of the USSR. It is described as a “high-income economy” by the World Bank and as an “advanced economy” by the International Monetary Fund. Estonia exports apparatus and electro-technical devices, textiles, paper, wood, farm products. It imports industrial raw material, transport means, fuels and consumer goods.

Moldova and Estonia established diplomatic relations on 10 November 1992.

Data by the National Statistics Bureau (BNS) shows that Moldova’s foreign trade with Estonia stood at 10.4 million dollars in 2014 (up by 41.9 per cent). The export was 4.4 million dollars (increasing by 31 per cent), and the import – six million dollars (rising by 51 per cent). In 2015, the export of Moldovan goods to Estonia recorded a slight decrease, standing at 4.3 million dollars.

About 500 persons born in Moldova are estimated to live in Estonia. Two societies of Moldovans are registered in Estonia; both work in Tallinn – the Luceafarul Moldovans’ cultural society and Estonia-Moldova society. The Estonian Community of Moldova, recorded in 2005, is accredited at the Moldovan Inter-ethnical Relations Bureau.

(Reporter N. Roibu, editor M. Jantovan)