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Estonian Ssr




  Full-name Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic
  Loc-name Eesti Nõukogude Sotsialistlik Vabariik
  Year Start 1940
  Year End 1991
  p1 Estonia
  flag P1 Flag of Estoniasvg
  s1 Estonia
  flag S1 Flag of Estoniasvg
  Flag Flag of Estonian SSRsvg
  Arms COA Estonian SSRpng
  Motto ''' Estonian :''' Kõigi maade proletaarlased, ühinege!
  Map SovietUnionEstoniapng
  Capital Tallinn
  Language Estonian and Russian
  Established July 21 , 1940
  Ussr-start August 6 , 1940
  Ussr-end August 20 , 1991
  Area-rank 13th
  Area 45,226
  Water 456%
  Pop-rank 15th
  Pop 1,565,662 (1989)
  Density 316
  Currency rubla
  Time-zone + 3
  Anthem Anthem Of Estonian SSR


The Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, short: '''Estonian SSR''' (, short: ''Eesti NSV''; ) was a short-lived Soviet-backed puppet stateThe Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania (Postcommunist States and Nations) David J. Smith from Front Matter ISBN-10: 0415285801 Estonia: Identity and Independence: Jean-Jacques Subrenat, David Cousins, Alexander Harding, Richard C. Waterhouse on Page 246. ISBN-10: 9042008903 proclaimed on July 21 1940 after the invasion and occupation of the Republic Of Estonia by USSR, and a constituent republic of the U.S.S.R. that succeeded it after annexation between 1940-1941 and 1944-1991. Its territory was conquered by Nazi Germany from 1941 to 1944 (see Occupation Of Estonia By Nazi Germany ).


CONTROVERSIES

Views diverge on history of Estonia, the core of the controversy lies in the different interpretations of the historical events during World War II and after.

During the times of .)''
, Toompea , commemorating government members killed by communist terror]]
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According to the , USA U.S.-Baltic Relations: Celebrating 85 Years of Friendship at state.gov Estonia remained occupied by the Soviet Union until restoration of its independence in 1991 and the 48 years of Soviet occupation and annexation was never recognized as legal by the Western democracies.

At the same time a Do-Over for history in Russia has started once again, raising fears among some historians that the Kremlin is — quite literally — trying to rewrite history in a way that risks whitewashing the darkest chapters of Russia's past. A Do-Over for Russian History? at wsj

Despite the fact that in 1940 those who had failed to have their passports stamped for voting Estonia into the USSR were allowed to be shot in the back of the head by Soviet tribunals, Justice in The Baltic at Time magazine on Monday, Aug. 19, 1940 , Russian Government and officials continue to maintain that the Soviet annexation of the Baltic States was legitimate1 and that the Soviet Union liberated the countries from the Nazis2http://www.lfpr.lt/uploads/File/Current/Jurgeleviciute.pdf.. They state that the Soviet troops had entered the Baltics in 1940 following the agreements and with the consent of the then governments of the Baltic republics. They maintain that the USSR was not in a state of war and was not waging any combat activities on the territory of the three Baltic states, therefore, the argument goes, the word 'occupation' can not be used http://www.newsfromrussia.com/main/2005/05/05/59601.html
http://www.newsfromrussia.com/main/2005/05/05/59605.html. "The assertions about {Link without Title} 'occupation' by the Soviet Union and the related claims ignore all legal, historical and political realities, and are therefore utterly groundless." (Russian Foreign Ministry)http://en.rian.ru/russia/20070118/59322624.html
See Also: Estonian Government in Exile




POLITICAL HISTORY

See Also: Estonia in World War II



Soviet Occupation 1940


The fate of the of August 1939.

On on Monday, October 9 1939 Moscow demanded that Estonia allow the USSR to establish military bases and station 25,000 troops on Estonian soil for the duration of the European war. The Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania by David J. Smith, Page 24, ISBN 0415285801 The government of Estonia accepted the ultimatum signing the corresponding agreement on September 28. 1939.

On June 12 , 1940 . According to the director of the Russian State Archive of the Naval Department Pavel Petrov (C.Phil.) according to the records in the archive the order for total military blockade of Estonia to the Soviet Baltic Fleet was given. Petrov at Finnish Defence Forces home page documents published from the State Archive of the Russian Navy

On June 14 the Soviet military blockade of Estonia went into effect while world’s attention was focused on the fall of Paris to Nazi Germany a day earlier. Two Soviet bombers downed Finnish passenger airplane " Kaleva " flying from Tallinn to Helsinki carrying three diplomatic pouches from the U.S. legations in Tallinn , Riga and Helsinki . The Last Flight from Tallinn at American Foreign Service Association

On emerged from the military bases in Estonia and, aided by additional 90,000 of Soviet troops, took over the country, Occupying the territories of Republic Of Estonia ,The World Book Encyclopedia ISBN-10: 0716601036 ''The History of the Baltic States'' by Kevin O'Connor ISBN-10: 0313323550 , and organizing and supporting communist protests all over the country.''Estonia: Identity and Independence'' by Jean-Jacques Subrenat, David Cousins, Alexander Harding, Richard C. Waterhouse ISBN-10: 9042008903

On June 17 the day France surrendered to Germany, Estonia accepted the ultimatum and the statehood of Estonia De Facto ceased to exist. The Estonian government decided according to the Kellogg-Briand Pact not to use war as an instrument of national policy. Given the overwhelming Soviet force both on the borders and inside the country, not to resist, to avoid bloodshed and open war. The Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania by David J. Smith p.19 ISBN 0415285801

Most of the Estonian Defence Forces and the Estonian Defence League Surrendered according to the orders believing that resistance was useless and were disarmed by the Red Army. Only the Estonian Single Signal Battalion stationed in Tallinn at Raua Street showed resistance. As the Red Army brought in additional reinforcements supported by six Armoured Fighting Vehicle s, the battle lasted several hours until sundown. There was one dead, several wounded on the Estonian side and about 10 killed and more wounded on the Soviet side. Finally the military resistance was ended with Negotiation s and the Single Signal Battalion surrendered and was disarmed. 51 years from the Raua Street Battle at Estonian Defence Forces Home Page

On June 21, 1940, The was replaced with a Red Flag on Pikk Hermann tower, the symbol of the government in Estonia in force.
On June 21 President Konstantin Päts (deported to Ufa on July 30 and later arrested) formed the new government under Prime Minister Johannes Vares .


On July 14-15 the rigged, extraordinary single-party parliamentary election were held where all but pro-Communist candidates were outlawed. People were forced to vote under the threat of prosecution. Those who failed to have their passports stamped for so voting were allowed to be shot in the back of the head. Justice in The Baltic at Time magazine on Monday, Aug. 19, 1940 Tribunals were set up to punish "traitors to the people." those who had fallen short of the "political duty" of voting Estonia into the USSR. The Communist "Union of the Estonian Working People" "won" the absolute majority of seats. On July 21 the parliament (''Riigivolikogu'') proclaimed Estonian SSR, and, despite the promises given before the election, petitioned to join the Soviet Union on July 22. In response the Estonian SSR was formally Annexed by the Soviet Union (USSR) on August 6 , 1940 , and nominally became the 16th Constituent Republic Of The USSR . (On July 16 , 1956 , the Karelo-Finnish SSR was demoted to the Karelian ASSR ; from then on until 1991, the Estonian SSR was considered the 15th constituent republic.)

According to Estonian and Western accounts the Republic of Estonia was 3 ''"whereas the Soviet annexias of the three Baltic States still has not been formally recognized by most European States and the USA, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and the Vatican still adhere to the concept of the Baltic States"''..




Soviet Terror

The Soviet authorities, having gained control over Estonia, immediately imposed a regime of terror. from Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia" was issued.

During the first year of Soviet occupation (1940-1941) over 8,000 people, including most of the country's leading politicians and military officers, were arrested. About 2,200 of the arrested were executed in Estonia, while most others were moved to prison camps in Russia, from where very few were later able to return alive.
On , Konstantin Päts was arrested and deported by the Soviets to Ufa in Russia on July 30, he died in a Psychiatric Hospital in Kalinin (currently Tver ) in Russia in 1956.
800 Estonian officers i.e. about a half of the total were executed, arrested or starved to death in Prison Camps .

Estonian graveyards and monuments were destroyed. Among others, the Tallinn Military Cemetery had the majority of gravestones from 1918–1944 destroyed by the Soviet authorities, and this graveyard became reused by the Red Army after World War II. Linda Soomre Memorial Plaque at britishembassy.gov.uk
Other cemeteries destroyed by the authorities during the Soviet era in Estonia include Baltic German cemeteries established in 1774 Kopli Cemetery , Mõigu Cemetery and the oldest cemetery in Tallinn, from 16th century, Kalamaja Cemetery . After the conquest of Estonia in 1944, the destruction of the monuments of the Republic Of Estonia , which had survived or had been restored during the German occupation, continued. On 15 April 1945 a monument by Amandus Adamson , erected to 87 persons who had fallen in the Estonian War Of Independence , was blown up in Pärnu . The destruction of war memorials subsequately lasted for several years and spanned across all counties. A comprehensive file concerning the monuments of the Estonian War of Independence, which had been compiled by the Military Department of the EC(b)P Central Committee in April 1945, has been preserved in the Estonian State Archives. Monuments are listed by counties in this file and it specifies the amount of explosive and an evaluation concerning the transportation that were needed. For example an extract regarding Võrumaa : ''"In order to carry out demolition works, 15 Party activists and 275 persons from the Destruction Battalion must be mobilised. 15 workers are needed for the execution of each demolition and 10 people are needed for protection.... In order to carry out demolition works, 225 kg of TNT, 150 metres of rope/fuse and 100 primers are needed, since there is no demolition material on the spot. 11 lorries, which are available but which lack petrol, are needed for carrying the ruins away."'' Report by the Chairman of the EC(b)P Võrumaa Committee, Tamm, No. 101/s to the EC(b)P CC 1st secretary Nikolai Karotamm. 06.04.1945. ERAF Archives depot 1, ref. 3, depository unit 501. L. 37.


Soviet repressions against ethnic Russians

Ethnic Russians in Estonia: Sergei Zarkevich, an activist of Russian organizations in Estonia, The owner of a book store "Russian Book": arrest order issued by NKVD on June 23, 1940, executed on March 25, 1941.
Oleg Vasilovski, a former General in the Russian Imperial Army . Arrest order issued by NKVD on July 1, 1940. Further fate unknown.
Sergei Klenski, one of the former leaders of the Russian Peasants Labor Party. Arrested on July 22. On November 19 1940, sentenced to 8 years in a prison camp. Further fate unknown. Mikhail Aleksandrov, Arseni Zhitkov. fate of individuals arrested at EIHC
Other ethnic Russians in Estonia arrested and executed by different Soviet War Tribunals in 1940-1941.
Ivan Salnikov, Pavel Mironov, Mihhail Arhipov, Vassili belugin, Vladimir Strekoytov, Vasili Zhilin, Vladimir Utekhin, Sergei Samennikov, Ivan Meitsev, Ivan Yeremeyev, Konstatin Bushuyev, Yegor Andreyev, Nikolai Sausailov, Aleksandr Serpukhov, Konstatin Nosov, Aleksandr Nekrasov, Nikolai Vasilev-Muroman, Aleksei Sinelshikov, Pyotr Molonenkov, Grigory Varlamov, Stepan Pylnikov, Ivan Lishayev, Pavel Belousev, Nikolai Gusev, Leonid Sakharov, Aleksander Chuganov, Fyodor Dobrovidov, Lev Dobek, Andrei Leontev, Ivan Sokolov, Ivan Svetlov, Vladimir Semenov, Valentin Semenov-Vasilev, Vasili Kamelkov, Georgi Lokhov, Aleksei Forlov, Ivan Ivanov, Vasili Karamsin, Aleksandr Krasilnikov, Aleksandr Zhukov, etc. Full list at: Individuals executed at EIHC


Soviet Deportations

The mass deportations of ethnic Estonians during the Soviet era together with migration into Estonia from other parts of the Soviet Union resulted in the share of ethnic Estonians in the country decreasing from 88% in 1934 to 62% in 1989. Background Note: Estonia AT U.S Department of State ''

Population of the Estonian SSR grew from 1,054,000 in 1940 to 1,565,662 in 1989. Estonia population . Due to the Urbanisation in the Soviet time, percentage of Urban population of Estonia raised from 33 in 1940 to 61 in 1976

While the Baltic republics had the highest Living Standard in the Soviet Union and high Industrialization rates, ethnic Estonians in Estonian SSR (similarly to Latvians in Latvian SSR , but unlike Lithuanians in Lithuanian SSR ) suffered sharp decline of their percentage in the total population due to the large-scale immigration, mostly of Russians . While in 1934 the Estonians comprised 88 percent of the total population of Estonia, by 1959 and 1970 their number had decreased to 75 and 68 percent, respectively (and to 61.5% by 1989 .
The White Book , P. 21.) The decline in percentage was especially severe as to urban and young population, which made it difficult for Estonians to maintain their ethnic identity. Within 11 years between 1959 and 1970 the proportion of Estonians in Tallinn declined as much as from 60 to 56 percent.
Parming, Tõnu (1980). Population Processes and the Nationality Issue in the Soviet Baltic . '' Soviet Studies '' 32 (3), 398-414. Population growth throughout the existence of the Estonian SSR was mainly due to immigration from other regions of the Soviet Union.
The White Book , P. 21, 147, 150.

Although the percentage of Estonians in the total population of the Estonian SSR declined due to Soviet migration policies, total number of ethnic Estonians was increasing in the Soviet period. BIRTHS, DEATHS AND NATURAL INCREASE. ESTONIANS This was due to the positive natural growth rate. The increase was some 1 or 2 thousand per year. For example, in 1970 number of live births of Estonians was 14,429 and number of deaths was 12,356, giving natural increase of 2,073 ethnic Estonians.

In 1940-1941 and 1944-1951 during the '' 26 (1), 53-78. During the first year of occupation, 1940-1941, alone, an estimated 43,900 lives were irrecoverably lost, not counting refugees.
Valge raamat , page 42 The following Three-year Nazi Occupation brought with it a loss of 32,740 lives, again not counting refugees. Another 16,000 people deaths were caused through Soviet repressions in the years following 1944.

See Also: Soviet deportations from Estonia




Nazi Occupation 1941-1944

See Also: Occupation of Estonia by Nazi Germany


After Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union on June 22 , 1941 ,the Wehrmacht reached Estonia in (July 1941).
Although initially the Germans were perceived as liberators from the USSR and its repressions by most Estonians in hope for restoration of the countries independence, it was soon realized that they were but another occupying power. Germans pillaged the country for the war effort and unleashed the Holocaust . Estonia was incorporated into the German province of Ostland .


Soviet Occupation 1944-1991

Soviet forces reconquered Estonia in the autumn of 1944 after fierce battles in the northeast of the country on the Narva River and on the Tannenberg Line (Sinimäed). In 1944, in the face of the country being re-occupied by the Red Army, 80000 people fled from Estonia by sea to Finland and Sweden, becoming War Refugee s and later, Expatriate s. 25,000 Estonians reached Sweden and a further 42,000 Germany. During the war about 8 000 Estonian Swedes and their family members had emigrated to Sweden. After the retreat of Germans, about 30,000 partisans remained in hiding in the Estonian forests, further on leading a massive guerrilla war.

In 1945 some territories of eastern Estonia with the towns of Jaanilinn and Petseri were transferred to the Russian SFSR .

In 1949 27,650 Soviet troops still led the war against the local partisans. Only the 1949 mass deportation when about 21,000 people were taken away broke the basis of the partisan movement. 6600 partisans gave themselves up in November of 1949. Later on the failure of the Hungarian uprising broke the resistance moral of the 700 men still remaining under cover. According to the Soviet data, up to 1953, 20,351 partisans were disarmed. Of these, 1510 perished in the battles. During that period, 1 728 members of the Red Army, NKVD and the militia were killed by the " Forest Brothers ". August Sabbe , the last surviving ''Forest Brother'' in Estonia, was discovered and killed Laar, Mart. War in the Woods: Estonia's Struggle for Survival, 1944-1956. ISBN 0-929590-08-2 by KGB agents in 1978.

During the first post-war decade of Soviet regime, Estonia was governed by Moscow via Russian-born Estonian governors. Born into the families of native Estonians in Russia, the latter had obtained their Red education in the Soviet Union during the Stalinist repressions at the end of the 1930s. Many of them had fought in the Red Army (in the Estonian Rifle Corps), few of them had mastered the Estonian language.Biographical Research in Eastern Europe: Altered Lives and Broken Biographies. Humphrey, Miller, Zdravomyslova ISBN 0754616576

Although the United States and the United Kingdom , the allies of the USSR against Germany during World War II , recognized the occupation of the Republic of Estonia by USSR at Yalta Conference in 1945 De Facto , the governments of the rest of the western democracies did not recognize the seizure of Estonia by the USSR in 1940 and in 1944 De Jure according to the Sumner Welles ' declaration of July 23, 1940 Daniel Fried, Assistant Secretary of State at U.S Department of StateThe Baltic States and their Region: New Europe or Old? by David J. Smith on Page 48 ISBN 9042016663Post-Cold War Identity Politics: Northern and Baltic Experiences by Marko Lehti on Page 272: ''Soviet occupation in Baltic countries - a position supported by the fact that an overwhelming majority of states never recognized the 1940 incorporation de jure.'' ISBN 0714683515 Such countries recognized Estonian diplomats and consuls who still functioned in many countries in the name of their former governments. These aging diplomats persisted in this anomalous situation until the ultimate restoration of Estonia's independence in 1991.Diplomats Without a Country: Baltic Diplomacy, International Law, and the Cold War by James T. McHugh , James S. Pacy, Page 2. ISBN 0313318786

First freely elected parliament during the Soviet era in Estonia had passed independence resolutions on May 8 , 1990 , and renamed Estonian SSR to the Republic of Estonia. On August 20 , 1991 Estonian parliament issued the Declaration of Independence from the Soviet Union. On September 6 1991 , the USSR Supreme Council recognized the independence of Estonia. The Rise and Fall of the Soviet Union: 1917-1991 (Sources in History) Richard Sakwa Page 248, ISBN-10: 0415122902, immediately followed by the international recognitions of the Republic of Estonia.

In 1992, . On February 23 1989 The flag of the Estonian SSR had been lowered on Pikk Hermann , it had been replaced with the flag of Estonia on February 24 , 1989 .

The last Soviet troops withdrew from Estonia in August 1994. Baltic Military District globalsecurity.org


Historical, pre-Perestroika Soviet Sources

Up to the reassessment of Soviet history in USSR that began during Perestroika , before the USSR had condemned the 1939 secret protocol between Nazi Germany and itself that had led to the invasion and occupation of the three Baltic countries including Estonia. The Forty-Third Session of the UN Sub-Commission at Google Scholar

The events in 1939 according to the pre-Perestroika Soviet sources were following: in a prior province of the , 3rd edition, entry on "СССР.Население", available online here

According to the Soviet sources The . On July 22 the declaration of Estonia's wish to join the USSR was adopted and the Supreme Soviet Of The USSR was addressed accordingly. The request was approved by the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on August 6 1940 . On July 23 the State Assembly proclaimed all land to be People's Property while banks and heavy industry were nationalized. On August 25 the State Assembly adopted the Constitution of the Estonian SSR, renamed itself the Supreme Soviet of the Estonian SSR and approved the Council Of People's Commissars of the Estonian SSR.


DEVELOPMENT


On '' 4 (3), 363-388.
  • the earlier economic structures constructed mostly in 1920-1940 were purposefully destroyed;

  • new production structures were constructed only to satisfy interests of the colonial power, assigning priorities according to an All-union production chain network;

  • local environmental resources were used in an extensive, robber-like manner;

  • the employment and migration policies were tailored towards assimilating the native population;

  • former economic ties of Estonia were cut off and Estonian economy was isolated from non-Soviet markets.


All banks and accounts were essentially , following the Scorched Earth policies, burnt most industrial constructions, destroying power plants, vehicles and cattle. Millions of dollars worth of goods were also moved from Estonia to Russia under the pretext of "evacuation" without providing any compensation.

Immediately after the war, major immigration projects were undertaken, labelled "brotherly aid under Stalinist nationality policies". For postwar reconstruction, hundreds of thousands of Russophone s were relocated into Estonia, mainly the cities. For example, during the years of 1945-1950, the total urban population count grew from 267,000 to 516,000; over 90% of the increase being fresh immigrants. Valge raamat , page 129; The White Book: Losses inflicted on the Estonian nation by occupation regimes , p. 147

A special care was taken to change the ethnic structure of population,Estonian Museum of Occupations: Majandus: Teise maailmasõja ja Nõukogude okupatsiooni aastad (1940-1991) especially in Northeastern Estonia. For example, a policy of prioritising immigrants before returning war refugees in assigning dwelling quarters was adopted."Narvskij rabochij" April 25 , 1950 , quoted in Valge raamat , page 132 and The White Book: Losses inflicted on the Estonian nation by occupation regimes , p. 149-150.


Collectivization

On '' 28 (3), 212-217.''Eesti Nõukogude Entsüklopeedia'' (Estonian Soviet Encyclopedia). Tallinn: Valgus, 1972. P. 221. 99.3% of farms had been collectivised by 1957 The White Book , P. 155.


Soviet capital investments in Estonia

Cities, such as (Tallinn was selected the host for Sailing Events ) sports and general infrastructure buildings were built, including Tallinn TV Tower , Pirita Yachting Centre and Linnahall . Tallinn Song Grounds , the host for song festivals, were built in 1960 Tallinn Song Grounds


Industry

of the occupation, called the fourth Five Year Plan, prescribed a total of 3.5 billion roubles of investments for enterprises in Estonia.

One of the important goals in this reformation of Estonia's economy was providing economic support to Leningrad . To this end, 40% of the total capital investments of the fourth Five Year Plan to be spent in Estonia were intended for investments in oil shale mining infrastructure. Gasified oil shale was delivered to Leningrad via a specially built pipeline starting from 1948; gas from this very same source didn't reach Tallinn until 1953. Even in 1961, 62.5% of the gas produced was delivered to Leningrad.

By the end of 1954, 227,000 apartments in Leningrad were gasified using the gas output of Kohtla-Järve ; only about three percent of that, or 6,041 apartments, had been gasified in Tallinn. Valge raamat , page 132; The White Book: Losses inflicted on the Estonian nation by occupation regimes , p. 149.


Healthcare in Estonian SSR

In the year 1950, the major problems meriting medical research were declared to be Tuberculosis , Traumatism , Occupational Diseases and Dysentery . In comparison to the war years, birth rate had increased, mortality (including infant mortality) decreased, and the birth rate again exceeded the death rate. Valge raamat , page 48

Despite the immense needs for research, the Faculty of Medicine at Tartu State University (now University Of Tartu ) suffered from major repressions, culminating after the March plenary session of 1950 . Altogether, 56 staff of the university were repressed; in the Faculty of Medicine, 12 Professor s of 17 were removed from their positions. They were replaced with less skilled but politically more trusted medical doctors.

Only after the Khrushchev Thaw period of 1956 started the healthcare networks to stabilise. Due to natural development, science and technology advanced and popular welfare increased. All demographic indicators improved: birth rate increased, mortality decreased. Healthcare became freely available to everybody.

On a downside, closed nature of the Soviet system severely restricted advances of science. Isolation from Western medical Journal s brought with it technical lag. International contacts were insignificant and more dependent on personal position in Party than actual skill.

Due to Soviet alcohol policies, Alcoholism became a growing health issue.
Valge raamat , page 49 The Communist Party organs attempted to cover it up; up to year 1985 (see Glasnost ), it was illegal to publish statistical data on alcohol sales. This indicator became the greatest in 1982-1984, when it reached 11.2 litres of Absolute Alcohol per person per annum. (In comparison, this indicator in Finland during the same period was only 6-7 litres per person per annum).

Life Expectancy of a person born in Estonia in 1991 was 5.5 years shorter than that of a person born in Finland in the same time. In comparison, Estonian life expectancy had exceeded that of Finnish life expectancy before 1940.


Budgetary system

In the Soviet system, all local ''proceeds'' were initially appropriated into the federal budget at Moscow , and some of them were then "invested" back to the local economies. Thus, the ''"investment"'' numbers do not represent influx of money; rather, they resemble the ''spending'' side of the national Budget .


ECONOMY


The Soviet rule significantly slowed Estonia's economic growth, resulting in a wide ''wealth gap'' in comparison with its neighboring countries that went free of Soviet yoke (e.g., Finland , Sweden ).
Valge raamat , pages 125, 148 The economic damages directly attributable to the second Soviet occupation (from 1945 to 1991) have been estimated to lie in the range of hundreds of billions of Dollars .
Valge raamat , page 20 Similarly, the damages to Estonian Ecology were estimated at around 4 billion USD.

Put another way, by the end of 1980s, Estonian economy had acquired a lag of about three decades.
Valge raamat , page 134

In comparison with other parts of the USSR its economy fared better and today Estonia remains the wealthiest of the formerly Soviet-controlled states.


Stagnation and technological lag

From late 1960s, economic stagnation hit Estonia. This was expressed in falls in production and exports, as well as significant slowing in technological progress, especially in machine and metal industries.
Valge raamat , page 140


OCCUPATION PROPAGANDA

Occupying powers made repeated attempts to present the extensive, damaging exploitation of local natural resources in positive light. For example, it was common to point towards constructing large power plants on Estonian soil, including two world's largest Oil Shale -fired Narva Power Plants built in the 1960s and the 1970s. Great Soviet Encyclopedia compared Estonia's annual industrial power output in 1940, the first year of occupation-caused destruction,
Valge raamat , page 128
190 GWh, against that of 1975, 16712 GWh.
Great Soviet Encyclopedia , 3rd edition, entry on "Эстонская ССР", available online here

Similarly, the official statistics pointed out that in 1988:
"Statistika aastaraamat 1990", 1991, pages 413-418, quoted in Valge raamat , page 146

This production was largely pointless
Valge raamat , page 128, which became painfully obvious in the respective industries' economic collapse after the Fall Of The Soviet Union . Since a majority of these enterprises' employees had been specifically relocated to Estonia in the occupation times, the resulting layoffs led to a sharp rise in Unemployment among the Russian-speaking Minorities . Furthermore, most of the products were of quality level marketable only inside Soviet Union ; they could not be profitably exported to the rest of the world.
Ibid, page 147.


MOSCOW OLYMPIC GAMES OF 1980

See Also: Sailing at the 1980 Summer Olympics



Tallinn was selected the host for Sailing Events . In preparations, a number of sports and general infrastructure buildings were built, including Tallinn TV Tower , Pirita Yachting Centre and Linnahall .


SEE ALSO



REFERENCES



EXTERNAL LINKS



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