OREANDA-NEWS. June 24, 2013. Estonia and Finland have never been more integrated than and this has been a conscious choice, said heads of government Andrus Ansip and Jyrki Katainen after their meeting in Stenbock House.

Finnish prime minister Jyrki Katainen said that the two countries had a lot in common: the labour market, business environment, currency and electricity market, and also a common gas market in the future. He added that the relationship between Estonia and Finland could be compared to a relationship between brothers.

Estonian prime minister Andrus Ansip said that the good relations between the two countries could also be developed in the area of e-government. Estonia and Finland are planning to prepare a report on the development of state governance in cooperation with the OECD, which will also touch upon the development of cooperation between the two countries in the area of e-governance. Ansip pointed out that 20,000 paper documents are transferred from one point to another in the Finnish and Estonian social insurance systems every year regardless of the fact that the technology exists that would allow them to move electronically and automatically. “In the 21st century, it’s not normal that people can use digital documents in their own countries but not when communicating with neighbouring states,” Ansip said, adding that Estonia and Finland could arrive at mutual acknowledgement of e-ID and harmonisation of digital signatures.

The prime ministers also discussed the LNG terminal and Rail Baltic project. Speaking about the LNG terminal, Ansip said that whichever way the European Commission decided to go, both Finland and Estonia would win from it. He added that in his opinion, indecision was the worst thing in the current situation. Ansip went on to say that the European Commission would be considering all of the pros and cons before making its decision.

Katainen said that the Rail Baltic project was important to Northern Europe as a whole. According to him, it is certain to boost the economy and develop the area of transportation. Ansip said that both Finland and Poland would benefit from the project and thanked his Finnish colleague for the support he and his country have given the Baltic States in regard to the project.
The prime ministers also spoke about the closely integrated economic relationships between their two states. Finland is Estonia’s number one import partner and its second most important export partner after Sweden, while the number of Finnish companies operating in Estonia is approximately 5000. During the meeting with his Estonian counterpart Katainen said that they were planning to increase investments in research and development in order to contribute to economic growth. According to him, Finnish companies are also contributing to innovative solutions, which strengthens the belief that economic growth will recover.

Katainen is on an official visit to Estonia today. The prime ministers of Estonia and Finland have bilateral meetings at least twice a year – once in Finland and once in Estonia. Prime Minister Ansip visited his Finnish colleague last November, while the previous visit of Prime Minister Katainen to Estonia took place in April last year.