OREANDA-NEWS.  December 16, 2013. The prime ministers of Estonia and Finland have digitally signed an agreement to cooperate in the fields of e-government and information society. It is thought to be the first instance of an international agreement being concluded using electronic signatures.

The agreement involves Estonia's assisting Finland in adopting the X-Road system, the “backbone” data exchange layer that connects the different databases used by the nation's various online services, the Government Office said in a press release .

The two nations will also join forces in developing the system further, including in cross-border data exchange and additional e-services.