Estonia is just six monthe away from becoming unconditional slave to the Western bankers. Any country can prosper with foreign loans, but when it comes to return the money with intrest on top of it, that's when the bankers step in--give us total control of your country and people or we will destroy you. Estonia is firmly on this path.

It is not good for a small weak economy to be bolted tightly to a group of stronger and much larger economies (like Germany). Estonia will not have the flexibility of being able to adjust their own interest rates or be able to allow their currency to fall to discourage imports and encourage exports. They will be pushed into tight fiscal policies that keep their economy in line with other Euro members but will also see job losses, reductions in public services, etc.

Do I detect a hint of “sour grapes” in Russia’s (and RT’s) attitude towards Estonia’s success in joining the Euro zone? Let’s see if I can correct some of the article's unbalanced (I deliberately choose not to use a stronger word) inclusions. Yes, Estonia’s wages are lower than in much of Europe. But so are costs of living. For example, food in Estonia is amongst Europe’s least expensive. Secondly, Estonians will not become poorer when the Euro is adopted – they will maintain precisely the same standard of living then as they had before, only it will now be expressed in terms of Euros. Thirdly, Estonia’s currency has been pegged to the Euro for exactly as long as the Euro has been in existence, and throughout all that time its exchange rate has remained absolutely rock-solid in relation to the Euro. So the country has already enjoyed the relative stability which a large currency provides, but with the formal introduction of the Euro it will also enjoy the extra foreign investment incentives which the Euro zone provides. This will further increase, not lessen, Estonia’s prosperity. (Currently Estonia’s per capita GNP is approximately 23% higher than Russia’s, and the gap will only widen.) Fourthly, of course Estonians are nostalgic about the passing of their national currency, the Kroon. The Kroon was both the symbol and the reality of Estonia’s escape from Russia’s rubble and the Russian Rouble in 1992, and both departures are close to Estonians’ hearts. Germans were also nostalgic at the passing of the Deutschmark, and French at the passing of the Frank. But the future lies ahead, not behind.

Enke, your heartburn is unwarranted. Estonia has the second-lowest sovereign debt in all of Europe. OK, you don't like bankers, for reasons of your own you apparently don't like Estonia either, and Estonia's success does not seem to be something you welcome. Fine, just say so. But don't invent nonsense.

This is Estonia's last obstacle from fully fledged occupation transfer from USSR to EU. Just after 20 years of independence, Estonia has realise it cannot longer sustain it and needs someone to manage it. History in the making. One day in the future Estonians will whinge for illegal EU occupation, just like they are doing it against Russia, even though they voted for it themselves in both cases.

Marzipan6, I am not against Estonia, I am for Estonia and I am talking facts not fiction. These are the facts which economy and prosperity relies upon: 1. Foreign loans. 2. Foreign investments. 3. Trained man power. 4. Technical and managerial elite. 5. Sustainable economy. 6. Well established middle class as servants to the big businesses. 7. Readily available lower class constantly on the verge of survival. 8. Buying power. 9. Uncorrupted and uncontrolled from outside Government. 10. Excellent neighbourly relations for free flow of manufactured goods. 11. Undisrupted and reasonably cheap Energy source as a steam roller for the economy, etc, etc. Can Estonia provide that? NO! And with the big bankers greed and desire for a total control, before they give you a loan they will force you to accept their conditions to diversify your economy to suit their needs instead of people’s needs, very soon Estonia will take Greece’s place. Everyone in Estonia will suffer and you are not excluded if you are an Estonian.

Just politicans who want to enjoy being memebers of the Rich Mans Club.Wonder what is the total number of non productive people it takes in the west to govern its people.Any figures availiable of people. so we can see where the taxpayers money is being spent.

Enke, you are deeply mistaken in regard to the list of handicaps that you ascribe to Estonia. (1) Foreign loans: Estonian sovereign debt is low not because it cannot get loans, but because it has chosen to live within its means. It has good credit ratings – Moody's: A1, Standard & Poor's: A-, Fitch: BBB+. (2) Foreign investments: Estonia is one of the leaders in Central and Eastern Europe in terms of foreign direct investments per capita. (3) Trained manpower: Estonia has one of the world’s highest education levels, is amongst the leading countries in the world in on-line technology, e-government and broadband penetration. Skype is an Estonian invention; NATO’s Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence is located in Estonia. (4) Technical and managerial elite: Estonia is a developed economy with high levels of expertise. It is handicapped by population size, though. (5) Sustainable economy: Estonia is one of the leading East European economies, and is in better shape than numbers of South European ones. It is a member of the OECD. (6) Well established middle class: Yes. (7) Readily available lower class: there is a significant pool of manual labour available, drawn mostly from parts of its Russian population. (8) Buying power: Estonia’s per capita GDP ranks it as 62nd out of 227 in the world. (9) Corruption: Transparency International ranks Estonia as 27th out of 180 in its 2009 Corruption Perceptions Index, better than every other East European country. (10) Neighbourly Relations: Estonia enjoys excellent relations with all the world, with the exception of Russia. It is Russia that is out of step with everyone else in that equation, not Estonia. (11) Reliable and Cheap Energy: Estonia generates hydro and wind electricity, has large oil shale deposits, is a world leader in the generation of electricity from oil shale and is integrating more fully into the European power grid.

@marzipan ... it's all going to change soon .. when estonia will depend on cetral european bank ... you'll see :)

Marzipan6, Finally you have admitted Estonia’s hidden agenda towards Russian population in Estonia. I want the whole World to see what Marzipan6 wrote to Enke regarding “Readily available lower class constantly on the verge of survival”! This is what Enke wrote to Marzipan6: Estonia, in order to prosper economically when it joins the Euro Zone, needs “readily available lower class constantly on the verge of survival”. This is Marzipan6 respond to Enke: “Readily available lower class: there is a significant pool of manual labour available, drawn mostly from parts of its Russian population”. My question to Marzipan6 is: is this is why Estonia doesn’t grant ethnic Russians citizenship because Estonia needs to keep the Russians in Estonia in the pool of manual labour constantly on the verge of survival? Are ethnic Russians in Estonia chosen by Estonian Government to serve Estonian population as Slaves? Because lower class of people constantly on the verge of survival is just that—destined slaves. When you are forbidden from having citizenship you are a second class citizen and as such you would work anything just to survive no matter who much is paid! Marzipan6, all of your suiting and companionate words towards ethnic Russians in Estonia in our previous discussions fall into the “POOL OF MANUAL LABOUR CONSTANTLY ON THE VERGE OF SURVIVAL, and you said it! Action speaks louder than words. Finally your hidden agenda, together with your Government’s one, has been revealed. The question now is, will ethnic Russians in Estonia put up with this or will they rise up in a revolt to protest their subdued status? I wish RT puts this thread on TOP RATED VIDEOS cection for the whole World to see it.

Sorry to disappoint you, Stole, but your post’s breathlessness is unwarranted. Enke listed, as one of the supposed foundations of economic prosperity, “Readily available lower class constantly on the verge of survival.” I actually disagree with her premise and point to some of the richest countries on earth such Luxembourg, the Scandinavian countries or Singapore as proof. Enke’s class notion is a nonsense relic of Marxist dogma, and I didn’t waste space even on even commenting on that aspect. But since her ideas about Estonia were as unrealistic as her notions of economic theory, I illustrated how Estonia did, in fact, have an ordinary societal spectrum, including both educated and unskilled people. In my response I quoted her words, “lower class”; these were her words, not mine. And “lower class constantly on the verge of survival” certainly were not my words. No one in Estonia is teetering on the edge of survival. Many Russians in Estonia are highly educated and competent people, holding responsible jobs. But also, most who are unskilled in Estonia are Russians. This is because Russians as a whole have not had the same passion for education as native Estonians, and many have not availed themselves of available educational opportunities. It is pleasing to see this trend is breaking down in the younger generation of Russians, many of whom are becoming much better educated than their elders. As per citizenship, this is readily available through naturalization, and requires meeting the same standard commitment to the country as naturalization does anywhere in the world. Approximately 152,000 people have so far chosen to become Estonian citizens through naturalization. Only about 100,000 people of no citizenship remain in Estonia, and this entirely by their own choice. For Stole’s benefit, I repeat exactly my original comment that Estonia has a significant pool of manual labour available, drawn mostly from parts of its Russian population.

There is no doubt that Estonia was 'pushed' into Euro zone to demonstrate a 'small' vote of confidence in the Euro. So far, Estonia has been a good pupil indeed in her fiscal discipline and in general 'tight lipped' attitude towards ongoing austerities since the collapse of property market over two years ago. In fact, Estonia in return still benefited from the EU and IMF annual grants, and now is 'ready' to boost her economy and tourism. The Nordic 'parents' and the banks of Sweden gave a sigh of relief, and we're supposed to welcome this new European. However, being a fully fledged European means being multinational. The latter may require a certain relaxed approach to anyone ethnically non-Estonian , including the foreign nationals living and working around the Estonians in the long term. In the small country where around 9% of population are legally identified as "aliens"(non-Estonians by registration and naturalisation) it may be proven a bit difficult to integrate other nationals as a result of foreign investments and international migration. Are the Estonian lawmakers really ready to re-write a half of the existing laws on the demand from the EU? The rising unemployment of 16% and cuts in wages and public sector may only exacerbate the very sensitive issue of the Estonian national identity - her currency,for example, when on the morning of January 2011 the people of Estonia will wake up to the imposed higher Euro prices for the same goods and services. And what if Estonia will be asked to contribute in helping other members in need? At the moment the 'prudent' Estonian government is almost intolerable to the Greek "mismanagement" and crisis, but we are yet to see if others in need will follow after Greece. Marzipan6, Have you started to 'polish' your Russian conversational? Who knows, next time in Estonia you may go 'bargain hunting' in Russia.

Svetlana, you say “There is no doubt that Estonia was 'pushed' into Euro zone to demonstrate a 'small' vote of confidence in the Euro.” Cearly you have specific, indisputable, verifiable evidence that not only has banished all doubt for you, but that would banish anyone else’s doubts, too. So what is that evidence? Please share it with us, so that everyone’s doubts will vanish as surely as yours. Or is your only evidence a towering anti-Estonian bias? Estonia has been working towards achieving the Euro zone and has had the current targets for accession since long before the Euro crisis. I wonder what your undoubtable evidence shows about who was pushing it all that time when the Euro didn’t even need a vote of confidence. As for the Nordic banks’ alleged “sigh of relief”, would you also please document evidence of that, or have you mistaken just your own hot air for someone else’s sighs? I doubt that you’ve ever as much as set a toe inside Estonia, Svetlana. If you had, and had looked around you for even just ten minutes, you would know that there are large numbers ethnic non-Estonians there of all sorts, both permanent residents and tourists whose annual numbers alone exceed the country’s total resident population. And you would have noticed a complete lack of violence and xenophobia of the kind that one finds in places like Russia, for instance. Also, if you knew just a bit about how the country works, you would know that for many years already Estonia has operated a lively foreign aid programme to less fortunate countries, including on occasions to regions of Russia. Helping others does not actually seem to be a problem. You are right in one thing, though: most Estonians do have a strong personal sense of discipline and a strong work ethic. Unlike some others, they never have been convinced of the logic that economic circumstances are actually improved by rioting and destroying things.

Marzipan6, When I said "pushed" I meant pushed by the Estonian politicians who openly expressed their desire and optimism to adopt the Euro for over a decade. Hardly any evidence are needed if the Estonian Finance Minister Mr Ligi is only happy to share his views in various outlets of international media. I doubt that any other evidence of "anti-Estonian bias" can be acceptable for you, so I've selected the following: Juri Estan ( fellow Estonian) - " Estonia Needs The "Reward" Of The Ailing Euro Like A Hole In The Head...!" Available on-line. "Economists' survey of the UK: will the Euro survive with its current membership for the next five years?"- available by typing and your search engine will direct you to the web-publication of the British newspaper. That would be helpful to know if "the Euro didn't need a vote of confidence".

EU is Germany grand plan to control Europa, by joining EU, especially smaller countries will surrender many decision making to EU Parliament and has to obey Law & regulation of EU. I ask the Estonia Government to look at Singapore, a small and successful country as an example for economy development.

Deja vu....all over again ...The 'new' Germany and her same 'old' puppets; Estonia & the other Baltic states, Austria, Croatia, Hungary etc...Estonia won't contribute much to the EU economy except fanatical devotion to Germany...starting with the boring coinage...Estonia’s euro coins will show no more than an outline of the country. The daily Postimees is peeved: “We have to be honest and admit that we have no grand cultural personality have like Mozart or Dante with whom we can adorn our coins. But there are other options. For example the German motifs showing the federal eagle and Brandenburg Gate – which are known far beyond the country’s borders – are a pleasure to look at. Money presents a free-of-charge opportunity to make our homeland better-known, because we’ll have to replace our coins no matter what. The real question, then, is whether we are putting this opportunity to good use. All members of the Eurozone may choose their motifs according to their own tastes, and the euro coins circulate in all member countries. With Estonia that makes 17 countries, with a total population of 300 million.” Baltic Review Looks like Estonia traded one 'empire' for another.

Svetlana, of course Estonia’s leaders strove for accession to the Euro zone. In the same way they strove for inclusion in the Schengen zone, for membership of the OECD, of NATO, of the EU, and for departure from the Soviet Union. Your post, and others also, often suggest or seem to suggest that others pushed Estonia into these goals as part of some sinister international conspiracy – which, of course, is nonsense. For each one of those milestones, there are some in the country who oppose. You quoted Jüri Estam, a particularly colourful and outspoken businessman, who isn’t thrilled about the Euro; I could quote many others who have a different view. Since no one has a magic crystal ball, we will all have to wait to see how Estonia’s accession to the Euro eventually works out. Most people agree that on the balance of probabilities, positive outcomes are rather more likely than negative ones. Certainly in regard to the membership within the other institutions that I named, Estonia’s experience has been very positive, and its membership within them continues to enjoy a very high popular support throughout the country. As regards the Euro “needing a vote of confidence”, in the current climate everything does – the dollar, the pound, the yuan, the yen, even the rouble. Estonia’s adoption of the Euro is hardly likely to set skyrockets of international confidence soaring around the world. And its efforts have nothing to do anyway with the current challenges the Euro faces, since its accession program long, long predates the Euro’s current challenges.

Nothing personal, Larry, but what a lot of nonsense you write. If there was even one sensible point in your post that is capable of actual analysis, I'd do it. As it is, I just shrug my shoulders and hope you enjoy your own little vision of the world.

Marzipan6, No, there isn't any indications of the "international conspiracy" on my part. I respect ordinary hard working Estonians who have been subjected to painful cuts in their salaries and what they entitled to in terms of public and social sectors. The Estonian austerities began when the Estonian politicians, in their adamant pursuit of the Euro zone, were equally adamant to meet the Maastricht criteria. They have done that, and understandably, many optimists like you, are very proud of being adherent to the EU requirements. Yes, Estonia departed from the Soviet Union and is well on her way in the opposite direction. Whether her arrival and stay at the chosen destination is going to be as comfortable as expected is yet to be seen. You may tell us later that trading the Estonian newly founded sovereignty for the optimism of her leaders was worthwhile even on the balance of probabilities, or you may tell us something different.