Foreign Operations Appropriated Assistance*
Fiscal Year (FY) 2007: $5.08 Million (M)
Estimate FY 2008: $2.55M**

Assistance Goals: Estonia occupies a strategic corner of the Nordic-Baltic region, sharing common borders with Russia and Latvia. Along with its Baltic neighbors Latvia and Lithuania, Estonia joined NATO and the European Union (EU) in spring 2004. Estonia fully supports U.S. foreign policy interests, including at the United Nations and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). Estonia has proven to be an active and reliable partner in the War on Terror. Promotion of peace and security remained the U.S. Government (USG) assistance priority in Estonia in 2007. Bilateral and mutually beneficial cooperation between the USG and the Government of Estonia (GOE) continues to produce excellent results.

Areas of Focus (Foreign Operations Appropriated Assistance):

Peace and Security (PS): FY 2007: $5.08M, Est. FY 2008: $2.55M

• Ensure the continued professional development of Estonia’s defense forces, thereby enabling Estonia to support NATO and the War on Terror
• Enhance a network of standardized, secure-mode capable, NATO-interoperable communications systems to improve Estonia’s ability to participate in coalition operations
• Provide English language training for soldiers and officers preparing for training opportunities in U.S. schools, as well as for deployment on U.S. and NATO-led operations in Iraq and Afghanistan

Recent Successes:

• Estonia’s defense forces are demonstrating increased interoperability with coalition forces and have begun sharing their experiences of NATO and coalition operations with other strategic security partners in the region. These include an active advisory role to EU- and NATO-aspirant countries (Georgia, Ukraine and Moldova) on issues of legal, judicial, economic, and political reform. The USG is increasingly able to leverage assistance to Estonia as a way to “train the trainers”.
• The GOE has expressed a firm commitment to meet the NATO goal of spending 2% of GDP on defense by 2010; its current defense budget is 1.8% of GDP. In 2007, Estonia increased its commitment abroad, which was reflected in the deployment of approximately 500 personnel to support UN, NATO, and U.S.-led coalition military operations. At nearly 8% of its total defense forces, that percentage is above the European average and is a good indication of Estonia's willingness and ability to contribute to global security. In 2007, Estonia reauthorized deployment of an infantry platoon in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Estonia has continued to support the NATO mission in Kosovo with over 80 peacekeepers.
• The USG helped improve the combat operational capabilities of the Estonian Land Forces by providing night vision devices. With the help of U.S. assistance, highly trained Estonian soldiers continue to fight along across a broad spectrum of roles including infantry troops embedded in a U.S. battalion providing security near Baghdad and staff officers in support of multinational headquarters. Estonia has expanded its support to include units with specialized capabilities, such as its human intelligence teams supporting the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan and peacekeeping units in Kosovo.

*Division J of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 Omnibus Appropriations Act: Department of State Foreign Operations and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2008, including: SEED, Child Survival and Health (CSH), Non-proliferation, Anti-terrorism, Demining and Related Programs (NADR), IMET and FMF

**Estimate from FY 2009 Congressional Budget Justification; Website: http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/101440.pdf

***While Estonia graduated from bilateral SEED assistance in FY 1996, it continued to receive Baltic Regional SEED funding through FY 2003.