Matti Vanhanen visits Estonia

Finland’s PM meets government

Finland’s Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen had a one-day visit in Tallinn with Estonian PM Andrus Ansip. The two discussed the EU constitutional agreement, enlargement issues, the economy, foreign security, energy security and the situation in Middle East. Readers who are worried about Finland declaring war on Estonia may rest easy: both PMs stated that the relations between the two countries are very good.

Both PMs attended the Finnish think-tank EVA symposium titled “What Finland can learn from Estonia?” The discussion focused on the tax system of the two states, education cooperation and issues concerning R&D. Ansip said Estonia has no ambitions to teach other states how to organize their lives, “But we are ready to share our experiences with everyone who is interested.” Ansip noted it was up to Finland to decide whether they would adopt the Estonian tax system. (Finnish readers may speculate for themselves how likely that would be.)

It is not known whether Mr. Vanhanen fulfilled his obligation as a Finnish citizen to load up on cheap vodka and cigarettes before returning home.