Opinion stories from and about Estonians.
Recently EstonianWorld’s co-author Chris Glew interviewed British Liberal Democratic Member of Parliament Sir Malcolm Bruce about his views on Estonia’s position in the wider world. There was one comment by Sir Malcolm that particularly struck me as being rather unintentionally controversial but controversial nevertheless. First of all he said that …
Adam Garrie: Modern Europe and political geography Read More »
After Iceland, Estonia is the second European country to engage in a radically novel democratic experiment. Against growing contempt for out of touch political elites, Estonian civil society is betting on crowdsourced constitutional reform. Charter 12 is an Estonian citizens’ initiative, signed by seventeen prominent public figures (mostly academics and …
Chris Glew argues that Estonia needs a different voting system – as currently, there’s a lack of a direct link between the voter and the MP.* For those unaware, Estonia’s method of electing its parliamentarians is the d’Hondt method of proportional representation. The country is divided into 12 regions, each …
Chris Glew: Estonia’s problem is the voting system Read More »
Russia is poised to gain technical superiority over NATO in areas that are crucial to the defence of the Baltic states. Scandinavian defence pundits are a sober bunch. But the latest report by the Swedish Defence Research Agency is a gripping read. Its 115 pages offer the first comprehensive and …
Edward Lucas: The Baltic states – defending the least defensible? Read More »
Dear Estonian World readers and followers, First of all, on behalf of the Estonian World team, I would like to take this opportunity and thank again everyone who has become our reader and follower in last four months, since we started. Estonian World was established by few like-minded Estonians living …
Last week, some very well known Estonian intellectuals and public figures issued a petition called Harta 12 (Charter 12). The petition came about in the light of recent allegedly murky dealings, where the governing Reform Party received large amounts of donations in cash. The authors of Charter 12 allege that …
U.S. Secretary of State Dean Acheson once said that having lost an empire, Britain is looking for a role. Today, something similar could be said about the United States. Having shed its briefly held status as the world’s single “hyperpower,” the U.S. is now looking for a role in the …
US presidential elections and Estonia – what’s the impact? Read More »
It is bitterly ironic that the Russian Federation, a country whose courts have just imprisoned several young women under the guise of protecting a religious institution and religious sensibilities, is a vastly more robust supporter of secularism in the Middle East than is Estonia. Less than two weeks ago, Urmas …
Adam Garrie: Why a secular Syria is good for Estonia Read More »
“This is my last election … After my election I have more flexibility.” “I will transmit this information to Vladimir.” I This exchange happened between US President Barack Obama and Russian then-President Dmitri Medvedev in March 2012. Between then and now, Medvedev became Prime Minister (and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin …
Sten Hankewitz: Can your enemy’s friend be your friend? Read More »
The European Union needs a new Convention of the Future of Europe, whereby the member states, meaning its citizens, can adopt decisions regarding the organisation of the future Europe, said President of the Republic of Estonia Toomas Hendrik Ilves and Giuliano Amato, former prime minister of Italy, at a discussion …