Section3.Estonia

** 1.History/Background of E.U. Country **


 * [[image:EN_009.jpg width="212" height="240" caption="Click on the picture to see a 360 view of Tallin's Town Square" link="@http://www.360cities.net/image/tallin-square-estonia-tallinn"]]

|| For much of Estonia's history, they were under the rule of a larger, more powerful country. In the1200s, German and Danish Crusaders invaded. Then, in 1561, the Swedes gained control of this country. In 1710, Estonia started having close ties to Russia, and when it became the Soviet Union, they conquerd Estonia. In 1917, however, Estonia succedeed at an attempt to break away from the Soviets. They were independent for two years until the USSR decided to invade again, regained control, and held onto it until its fall in 1990. The Estonians were free again, and they remain free today.

Today, the Estonians have a democracy with a president, Toomas Hendrik Ilves, a prime minester appointed by the president, Andrus Ansip, and a parliment (Riigikogu). The Riigikogu has 101 members, that are elected from the fifteen counties. The government is working to become more of an economic and political power, such as the countries of western Europe. The picture on the left is the Toompea Castle, which is the home of the Riigikogu.

The economy is a free market economy that is rapidly rebuilding thanks to help from western European countries, and the Estonians are taking advantage of the success. A lot are moving to larger homes in cities, having better jobs in services and industry instead of agriculture, and living with higher standards. The economy is becoming more one-sided now as industrialization is happening quickly. Also, due to beautiful, historic cities such as the capital, Tallin, the tourisim industry is growing rapidly.

The country also has state-funded health care, which 95% of people have access to today. Hospital care is free, too, although dentistry is not. In Estonia, the smoking rate is high, which makes the goverment spend more money on health care for these smokers. The health care goal in Estonia is that the goverment wants the quality of the health care to improve.

Also, Estonia was one of the last countries in Europe to convert to Christianity. In the 1300s, the Estonians followed an ancient religion that worshiped a god named Taara. Christianty was spread by missionaries and by foreign invasions. However, many people are secular due to the Soviets suppressing religion. In Estonia, religious worship is now free, you can choose. ||

Click on the flag to view the European Council in Strasbourg, France. || Estonia got accepted into the European Union in 2004 along with Poland, Malta, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Hungary. There were 15 members before 2004, and they added two in 2007(Romania and Bulgaria) to expand to 27 nations. Currently Turkey, Croatia, and Macedonia are canidates, and possible canidates are Albania, Iceland, Montenegro, and Serbia.
 * 2. Year of Admission to E.U. History and General Information about the E.U.**
 * [[image:ee-lgflag.gif width="243" height="162" link="@http://www.360cities.net/image/inside-court-of-the-european-parliament-in-strasbourg-alsace-france"]]

The idea of a unified Europe first came up in 1952 when a French foreign minster Robert Schumman proposed a plan to create a European Steel and Coal Community. This would take the tariffs off these products between member countries. The original countries were France, West Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, Italy, and the Netherlands. This later expanded to all products.

In 1967 the Merger Treaty combined the three institutions creating a single European Community. The three combining institutions are the European Commission, the Council of Minsters, and the European Parliament. Originally, the members of the Parliament were elected by the country's own Parliament. In 1979, however, the first election of Parliament occurred.

In 1999 the Euro was launched into the market, and it was, at the time, the currency of every European Union nation but the UK, Sweden, and Denmark started to use it. The Euro makes for less expensive and tedious currency changes for business men and women that travel to and from countries all the time.

The economy is a common market economy that has removed trade barriers and created a powerful trade bloc. All of the countries seperate can't compare to the larger countries in Gross Domestic Product. When they throw all of their GDPs together, they can be up there with some of those major nations. This also means that if another country wants to stop trading with one of the E.U. countries, it has to stop trading with all of the countries. This makes these countries, especially smaller countries such as Estonia, much more of a force and a more appealing trade canidate to the major countries of the world, such as China and Russia. ||

media type="file" key="Michael 1.wav" width="300" height="50" Click on the link to hear our view! ||
 * 3. How does the E.U. and your country feel about global temperatures/climate change? (//environmental issue)// **
 * || It is agreed that we would put money towards global financing of Europe, 5-7 billion. The EU has been active on climate for a number of years. Clean and energy efficient cars, for example, are now being produced. The E.C commitment has increased 30%. 16 members have not yet accounted for the E.U and energy pack, a plan to spend money on the enviroment. Also, they're spending in an E-7 plan, a more expensive approach then the old E-6. The EU is the leading spender on climate change in the world.


 * 4. How does the E.U. and your country feel about supporting the war in Afghanistan? //(political issue)// **
 * [[image:map_of_afghanistan.jpg width="224" height="178" caption="Click on the map to read about Operation Moshtarak" link="@http://afghanistan.blogs.cnn.com/2010/02/13/more-about-operation-moshtarak/"]] || The E.U and the goverment want to commit to a secure, stable, free and prosperous Afghanistan. They also want to have a democratic Afghanistan. Afghanistan and the E.U has a five year strategy to provide a cooperation against a changing political and enviorment. This plan is scheduled to last from 2007-2013. The E.U is currently assisting Afghanistan by stopping narcotic productions, buliding hospitals and clinics, and establishing justice, law, and order.

Estonia is sending troops to Afghanistan. They are investing troops to Operation Moshtarak. However, we disagree with the sending, since Estonia only has 216,483 people fit for service. The country is sending in troops in small amounts so the country is not left defenseless. in this European contex council particulary is in need capsyting bulidings in Afghanistan. No, because they have a low population of male:216,483 female:260,408 and if they send more troop's, they are risking there lives. media type="file" key="Michael 2.wav" width="300" height="50" Click on the link to hear our view! ||


 * 5. What is the economic background of your country and how does your country feel about supporting the economies of weaker countries in the E.U? //(economic issue)// **
 * [[image:EEK_100.jpg width="265" height="140" align="left"]]

This is the Estonian Kroon, the currency of Estonia. They do not use the Euro. 1 Kroon = .06 Euros || Estonia is a small country that has no major industry, with an agriculture industry that is diminishing quickly. Their largest export is machinery and tools. Finland is a Estonia's major trader, with 16.2%of Estonia's trade going to Finland. Estonia used to trade to the east, but it has quickly shifted to the west, although Russia is still trading with Estonia.

Estonia has a free market economy that is being rebuilt rapidly, thanks to the countributions of western European countries. They were in a crises, however, when Russian and Asian economies fell. In Estonia, the counsumption per capita is high, inflation rates are down, and production is up. The Estonians have oppertunities for higher living standards. They can live in cities, they can have better, more modern lives, and they can have jobs in industry or in goods and services. However, the unemployment rate is around 10%. Estonia's main industries are timber, textiles, food processing, electronics, and chemicals. Estonia also has one of the fastest growing tourisim industries with cities such as Tallin attracting so many.

Estonia's economy is still rebuilding, so they do want the money from the countries. They're economy has been growing rapidly, and it is mostly due to the help of the EU. Before 2004, which is when they joined the EU, their economy has risen steadily, since their economy was at a low in 2004 when the Asian and Russian. The EU sent money to help companies, and to help switch their trade from the east to the west, which is utilizing its position in Europe.  media type="file" key="Michael 3.wav" width="300" height="50" Click on the link to hear our view! ||