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GLOBAL-LOCAL INTERPLAY IN THE BALTIC SEA REGION Pärnu, Estonia, October 1-4, 1998  Prof. Ott Kurs
Abstract
Estonia belonged to states formed by stronger nations for long periods.
For Estonia, as for most northern and most maritime parts of the Baltics,
sealinks were and are necessary to maintain communications with
neighbouring areas.
Belonging in the 13th-17th centuries to the Danish and Swedish
administrative-political units, Estonia was divided functionally into
maritime and continental areas. In maritime Estonia, the centres of gravity
for foreign communications were Tallinn (Reval), Narva and Pärnu (Pernau).
Although in 1710/21-1917 Estonia was a part of great Eurasian Russian
empire, close relations to other parts of the BSR and to Central Europe
were preserved. Subsequent to Estonian independence in 1918, those
relations increased and in the 1930-s, the Region of Baltoscandia started
to form in northern Europe. The process of Baltoscandian integration was
interrupted by WW II and long-lasting Soviet annexation, during which an
iron curtain was built on the Baltic Sea. The re-establishing of historical
relations on the Baltic began only at the end of 1980-s, in connection with
the weakening of the Soviet system.
Present independent Estonia belongs again in the economic-cultural
community, the frame of which is the Stockholm-Helsinki-Tallinn triangle.
Due to the geographical and ethnic closeness, the Helsinki-Tallinn axis is
stronger with prongs to the N and S, where they accordingly form
Helsinki-Turku-Tampere and Tallinn-Pärnu-Tartu triangles. In Estonia,
Pärnu, which also have rather frequent relations to the Latvian capital,
Riga, and from there to Central Europe, is developing very rapidly along
with Tallinn.
Tartu, the old university (founded as a daughter of the University of
Uppsala in 1632) town in Estonia, had strong relations to Riga in the past,
but nowadays connections to Finland and Sweden are prefered. Due to
Latvia's stronger integration to Europe, also an effective
Tartu-Valga/Valka-Riga axis has been able to form. The lack of modern
activities (excluding those of the university) and communications has
resulted in Tartu's inability to serve as the main centre of continental
Estonia. The paving of way for an express Tallinn-Tartu highway has high
priority. Tartu also has common intrests with Pskov (Pihkva in Estonian), a
centre of the Peipsi (Peipus) southern subregion in NW Russia.
Commercial agreements with St Petersburg, the main centre of NW Russia, are
very important for the border town of Narva, previously a famous trade and
manufacture centre, for the other russified towns of NE Estonia, and also
the agricultural zone (cucumber, onion, tomato, animal production) of
Peipsi northern subregion. Although Estonia is a unitary state, its
different parts have different interests in foreign relations.
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