The security of northern Europe is affected by stability in the Baltic region. So U.S. national security interests are served by current U.S.-Estonian cooperation to build an Estonian national defense closely linked to North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and an economy tied to the European Union (EU). Estonia?s efforts to build a democratic state aligned with the EU coincide with the U.S. national interest of promoting democracy globally. Membership in European institutions requires that Estonia be a functioning democratic state, which meets the democratic community?s human rights/civil liberties standards. The embassy is helping Estonia deal with social equality issues through a variety of assistance programs such as training unemployed non-Estonians and supporting a local law center that provides legal training.
The embassy operates in a friendly environment and is well positioned to build strong working relationships with government and public leaders. Embassy resources include a staff of 33 Americans, a military assistance program of close to $6 million, about $200,000 in Democracy Commission funds, and total funding of $11.5 million. The Mission Performance Plan (MPP) has clear, realistic objectives, and reflects embassy-wide coordination. Operationally, however, the embassy needs to improve interagency cooperation, especially in the sharing of sensitive information. The public affairs section carefully manages the public diplomacy grants program. But overall management of the entire assistance program has been fragmented, and the embassy is making an effort to coordinate and track the grants program from the development of proposals through to the awarding of a grant. In addition, reporting needs to be tightened, eliminating marginal reports. The administrative section functions well, with good communications and coordination. The major administrative challenge is to restructure nonexpendable property management and establish a more effective work order system. With cooperation from the Estonian government, the embassy tightened perimeter security after the September 11 terrorist attacks.
Joint U.S. and Estonian law enforcement organizations work together effectively to combat transnational crime by helping reduce trafficking in women, fighting the drug trade, and addressing a difficult money laundering problem.
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