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Home , Estonia

Refl ections on some milestones in in the beginning of the

Brit Løvseth Ambassador of to

Talk given in on 24 October 2008 at the conference “For Estonia. 90 years of foreign policy and diplomacy”

As a former ambassador to Estonia, and still an active member of the foreign service, what will follow will be my personal refl ections on this im- portant period for Estonia. It was during this time that the foundation was laid for the sustainability of the regained independence – with 20 August 1991 and 31 August 1994 as the most important dates, in my mind.

Norway never recognised the Soviet annexation of Estonia and the two other , and on 27 August 1991, then foreign ministers Thorvald Stoltenberg and signed a mutual declaration in Oslo on the re-establishment of diplomatic rela- tions between Norway and Estonia.

After 27 August, there were discussions about whether Norway should establish one embassy in the capital of each of the three Baltic states, or if one common embassy in one of the capitals would be suffi cient. The foreign minister spoke strongly in favour of 3 and managed to get this proposal through the . One decisive element was the assumption that it would most likely take many years before Estonia, and would be able to establish their embassies in Oslo. This proved wrong, though. In 1994, an Estonian embassy in Oslo was opened, headed by a chargé d’affaires. In 2000 the fi rst resident Estonian ambassador to Norway was accredited.

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As said, the discussions took some time, but on Friday, 22 1991, I was ap- pointed by HM the King as the fi rst Norwegian ambassador to Estonia after Estonia’s re-independence, and the fi rst Norwegian ambassador ever residing in Tallinn.

Ambassadors to Latvia and Lithuania were appointed at the same time. On Monday the 24th we left for our new postings, and on Wednesday 26 November all three of us presented our credentials to the respective heads of state in a sort of concerted action. My presentation was to H. E. Mr Arnold Rüütel, in his capacity as Chairman of the of Estonia, as this was before the re-established Estonia’s fi rst elections. By my presentation, Norway became the 11th country accrediting an ambas- sador in Tallinn, and I became the 8th among the residing ambassadors.

The reasoning behind having diplomatic repre- sentation in a capital may vary, depending upon For Estonia at that time, the whether you are the sending state or the receiv- presence of diplomatic rep- ing state. For Estonia at that time, the presence resentations was considered of diplomatic representations was considered as as important as that of armed important as that of armed forces when it came forces. to the protection of the regained independence; in other words, the presence was considered an important part of Estonia’s security policy.

I am grateful as well as proud that I was given the chance to be part of this important chapter of Estonia’s history.

I have to say that my arrival in November 1991 was not my fi rst time visiting Estonia; I had actually already been there twice – the fi rst time to visit good friends, fellow scholarship-holders in . This was in the mid-seventies. The second time was when I served in our embassy in , in the last part of the eighties. In spite of being in the foreign service, this last visit was as a regular citizen, as countries that had not recognised the incorporation of the Baltic States into the had restrictions on the travelling of diplomatic personnel to these Soviet republics. The purpose was, of course, to avoid giving to the Soviet incorporation.

Friends are always good to have. Thanks to one of them, my stay in the hotel became a relatively short one. The then minister of economy, actually also the deputy prime minister, was hospitable enough to offer premises for the embassy in his minist- ry’s building on Suur-Ameerika Street. He also arranged a house for me and my family in the former nomenklatura’s summer resort -Joa. ‘Suvila number üks’ was the Norwegian residence for quite a while, and my family has a lot of good memories from that time – in spite of the hardship it was to commute from there every day.

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Ambassador of the Kingdom of Norway Brit Løvseth going to present her credentials. 26.11.1991.

The winter of 1991/92 was a long and cold one. It was cold not only because of the weather, but also because the energy card was being used again, as it had been used before. The supply of heating oil was dramatically reduced, and in the blocks of fl ats in Lasnamäe, probably also in Mustamäe and Õismäe, the temperature was less than +10 degrees. The offi ce on Suur-Ameerika was freezing cold, and the wind was blowing through the building. A winter coat and warm boots were necessary in order to survive.

For a foreigner without a garden plot and a suf- fi cient storage of agricultural products from the For me this was like being taken preceding harvest, life was not too easy. For eco- back to post-war Norway, to the nomic reasons, it was deemed necessary to in- 50s when I grew up. troduce rationing cards for basic products such as fl our and sugar, and some others as well. The supply of meat – and fi sh, of course – was indeed not impressive. As a matter of fact, empty shop counters were more a rule than the exception, in . In Keila-Joa, we were privileged – not only did the house have its own heating system, but we also had a freezer. And we had a shop in the area, a shop in which there was usually at least something to buy for the day, and even a little extra to keep in the freezer. For me this was like being taken back to post-war Norway, to the 50s when I grew up. (The difference was that at that time we did not have any freezer.)

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Life was not easy, and people did not feel safe. Could they really trust that indepen- dence had come to stay? The former Soviet troops were still in the country, the borders were not agreed, the economy was still strongly interlinked, and Estonian de- posits in former Soviet foreign trade were frozen due to political reasons. More than once during this time it happened that the minister of defence made contact in person with some foreign representatives to convey his concerns regarding observed military activity at the Eastern border. In spite of this, it was my impression that peo- ple in general were optimistic.

However, one group was utterly concerned, and that was the former Soviet offi cers that all of a sudden found themselves jobless, in a foreign country, faced with a situ- ation full of lots of insecurity in terms of the future. Norway had made commitments regarding substantial fi nancial contributions for a housing programme in for ex-Soviet offi cers in order to facilitate the withdrawal of the troops from the three Bal- tic states. This rumour spread, and I was suddenly faced with visits from representa- tives of the different military establishments with requests of assistance for their case, asking whether it would be possible for me to secure them a fl at in these houses that were going to be built. My command of the is somewhat limited, but I was in a way able to communicate with these visitors to the embassy, and I think this gave me some credibility within this community, even though I was not in a position to give them anything – except my time, to listen to their stories.

Their case was part of the minority issue. In my time in Estonia there were a number of visits from, among others, the OSCE High Commissioner for National Minorities, a position then held by Max van den Stoehl, today by my former colleague and boss – former minister of foreign affairs Knut Vollebæk. I dare say that this was an issue where I felt that it was diffi cult to get acceptance in foreign capitals for the description of the situation as seen from Estonia.

One of the bright sides of , if I may phrase it that way, was that as shops in general Hospitality, generosity, joy and were rather empty and there was not much to buy, warm feelings are memories people were much less focused on things. There that will always stay with me were no thoughts of putting money into the , from these early days of re- either. So people were, as I see it, much more in- gained independence. clined to share what they had and enjoy it. Food and drinks were rather generously shared, and it seemed that there was always a reason for partying. Hospitality, generosity, joy and warm feelings are memories that will always stay with me from these early days of regained independence.

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One of the highlights for me from that fi rst winter – during the rationing – was a piece of homemade apple cake with whipped cream and hot tea made from dried fruits, also homemade, consumed in the very cold Lasnamäe fl at of the translator of my favourite Norwegian author. That was close to heaven.

Speaking of books – the bookstore in the house on Harju street, where all the famous authors lived, The bookstore in the house on became for me a symbol of the rapid changes that Harju street, where all the fa- Estonia so successfully underwent in a relatively mous authors lived, became short time. The transformation from a centralised for me a symbol of the rapid command system to a fully market economic-orien- changes that Estonia so suc- ted system was indeed not an easy one. When I cessfully underwent in a rela- arrived, the old system was still in place – if you tively short time. wanted to buy something, you had to join no less than 3 queues. First to decide what to buy – that is, to point out what you wanted to have, in order to get a piece of paper to present to the cashier so you could pay. In front of the register there was always a long, long queue. This was not so strange, as are famous for their love of books. I did not come for the books, though, as my Estonian at that stage was not too developed. I came for other things, like lovely cards and different kind of paper materials. After having paid, you had to join the fi rst queue once again, to pick up your purchase. I was happy to note that it did not take many months before this system was history. Only the abacus stayed.

More about money

The monetary reform took place at the end of 1992 – in spite of all the interna- tional expert advice in favour of a postponement. From an Estonian point of view, it was considered important, if not to say absolutely necessary, to get rid of the roubles as soon as possible. For economic development, for economic reforms, but also for the psychological factor, as the introduction of a national currency was seen as an important part of independence and a part of the foreign policy. The Estonian (pegged to the German mark 8 to 1) was introduced on 20 June 1992. As each person was only allowed to exchange a rather limited amount, the money reform was not without substantial sacrifi ces for many people. But there were few – if any – that complained.

The time for the money reform was certainly not chosen by random. It was the bright time of the year, when no heating was required and Mother Earth had already started to bless people’s garden plots with new produce. It was easy to survive, and people were full of optimism. Then came the economic reforms – the introduction of a fl at

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tax of 25 % was considered dramatically progressive, even in an international context. The farmers faced a pretty hard time, as markets disappeared and subsidies dropped – or were completely abolished, together with import/export restrictions.

Socially disadvantaged groups also payed a tough price when budgets had to be balan- ced, due to the requirements of international monetary institutions in connection with support schemes necessary for economic reforms.

More and more foreign investors came. The Norwegian company Statoil was early in focusing on the Estonian (and Baltic) market, and opened the fi rst fuel station some months before the money reform. I was utterly proud when their fi rst fuel station in Tallinn was referred to by Statoil people as mine.

When Jüri Luik became the foreign minister, he summed up the goals of the Estonian foreign policy as follows: ‘to establish a situation that will make an attack on Estonia as unlikely as an attack on or , and to have Russia consider/look upon Estonia as a normal country, where Russia has no special rights’.

Since then, Estonia has worked for the strongest possible integration in the interna- tional community. As I remember it, EU membership was at that time considered fi rst and foremost a tool for NATO membership, as membership in NATO was considered crucial, not to mention the only realistic guarantee for Estonia’s security. (This was at a time when we Norwegians, for the second time, rejected EU membership in a refe- rendum.) I must confess that I was a bit over-optimistic on Estonia’s behalf regarding when Estonia would be accepted as a member of these two organisations. It is always so that when you look back, things look different compared to what they looked like in the past, when that time was the present.

Speaking about defence

I had the good fortune of my embassy being as- signed to be the NATO lead embassy in Tallinn, or The interest from NATO’s side NATO contact point on the spot, if you like. This was great, but not always imp- function got me very closely involved in a lot of ressively co-ordinated. NATO-related activities in Estonia, including the many visits that took place, from the Secretary- General himself and downwards. With my background from our National Defence Col- lege and as a person with a strong interest for security policy issues, this was indeed a rewarding duty that I performed with great pleasure, and hopefully to the satisfaction of NATO and my NATO colleagues as well as the Estonians. The interest from NATO’s side was great, but not always impressively co-ordinated. I remember that at the same

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day as the agreement on for Estonia was signed in , there was a high-level mission from Brussels visiting, and we had a dinner with quite lively discussions around my table at Sihi Street 31, where the permanent Norwegian resi- dence had been established after an extensive reconstruction.

Today I think, does Estonia consider EU and NATO membership to be equally important?

Tallinn in the period of my stay had a very small, but very close and extremely nice diplomatic Tallinn in the period of my stay community. As mentioned, it was not evident that had a very small, but very close Norway should have one embassy in each of the 3 and extremely nice diplomatic Baltic capitals, and this was the consideration in community. many other countries, too. Others, even, did not establish any at all, but covered all three countries through side accreditation from bigger capitals. As Helsinki was so close, Estonia got, to my mind, fewer embassies than would be normal for a capital of Tallinn’s size. There were also many within the business community that commuted from Hel- sinki, leaving their families there. In my opinion, this infl uenced the development of Tallinn’s international community in a somewhat negative way.

An international school is a prerequisite to attract foreigners. Tallinn did not have such a school, and it was a tough and long process to get one. I had 2 children, and was a little bit in despair when I found out that school no. 7 was really no alterna- tive. Due to the fact that there were very few children at that time with the need for an international education, we – the parents, who took the initiative for establishing one– had to be pragmatic. But I dare say the result was good, and a combination of the best in the Estonian and the international education system. We were very proud that we managed to attract the interest of the then foreign minister for our project to such an extent that he agreed to be the chairman of the board of the IST. There may have been many reasons for our diffi culties – from few children available, to rivalry between different English-speaking educational systems.

I understand that our project was not sustainable, but I am happy to note that there is an international school in Tallinn now. Our project, by the way, also included an element of support for cultural heritage, as we got a building that we took upon our- selves to restore as the school building.

I cannot conclude without mentioning 24 – a special day for Estonia, as well as for me, as it was my father’s birthday. 24 February 1992 was something ex- traordinary. It was a cold and very early morning at when the Estonian fl ag was hoisted on , on the fi rst after regaining independence.

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There were people all along the road up there, a huge crowd showing its enthusiasm. Singing, shouting. My children consider this one of their strongest memories.

In 1994 on 24 February, I had the honour to be the special guest of the Estonian Olym- pic Team at Lillehammer, when Norway hosted the Olympic Winter Games. It was nothing short of great when the Estonian Nordic combined team almost managed to get a medal and many of the young Estonian winter athletes started their Olympic careers, bringing fame to their country.

Some months later the Estonia accident brought the name ‘Estonia’ into the headlines of international news agencies. It was hard to believe that what had happened really could happen. Although everybody could understand that this was a terrible tragedy, very few outside Estonia could understand what it meant for such a small nation, where everybody knew each other and everybody had a relative or acquaintance that lost his or her life. Norwegian lives were also lost, even though in a much smaller number than it was for Estonia, Sweden and .

As culture plays an important part in any coun- try’s foreign policy, my last words will be devoted There are so many highlights to all the great cultural events that were taking that time does not allow me to place in Estonia during those years – in Tallinn mention any of them in particu- and all around the country. There are so many lar, except one: the song fes- highlights that time does not allow me to mention tival in . I am extremely any of them in particular, except one: the song happy to have been present festival in Tartu. I am extremely happy to have at the fi rst one after regaining been present at the fi rst one after regaining inde- independence. pendence. So many people, so many colours, so much joy. It was impressive, it was touching, it was great in a way that is impossible to describe.

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