-	Visits of Importance
-	Agreements
-	Economic Relations
-	Cultural Relations
-	Estonians in Poland
-	Poles in Estonia

Poland recognised Estonia's independence on 31 December 1920 and re-recognised it on 26 August 1991. Diplomatic relations between Estonia and Poland were re-established in September 1991.

Estonia opened its Embassy in Warsaw in the autumn of 1995. Charg� d'Affaires a.i. was Riho Laanem�e. In 1996, Peeter Restsinski became the Estonian Ambassador to Poland residing in Warsaw. In 2000 the Estonian Ambassador to Poland was Aivo Orav. As of August 2005, the Estonian Ambassador to Poland is Ants Frosch.

Estonia has three�Honorary Consuls in Poland. Robert Kornecki has been running the consulate in Szczecin�since October 2002. The jurisdiction of the consulate comprises of the administrative districts of Zachodniopomorskie, Pomorskie, Wielkopolskie and Lubuskie. On 11 March 2005, a second Estonian Honorary Consulate was opened in Poznan, led by the rector of the Poznan School of Social Sciences Professor Michal Iwaszkiewicz. The jurisdiction of the Honorary Consulate is the Wielkopolskie administrative district. On 20 June 2006, the Honorary Consulate in Krakow was opened, led by lawyer Piotr Paluch. The jurisdiction of the newest consulate�comprises of�the administrative districts of Malopolskie, Podkarpackie and Slaskie

The Polish Embassy in Estonia was opened in Tallinn in August 1993. Ambassador Jakub Wolasiewicz presented his credentials in November 1994, Ambassador Wojciech Wr�blewski assumed the post in June 2001. As of August 2005, the Polish Ambassador to Estonia is Tomasz Chloń.

Visits of Importance

A fresh impetus and meaning to Estonia and Poland's relations was given by the start of the European Union enlargement process, as they co-operated closely within the work of the Luxembourg and Laeken groups. Active communication has continued within the membership of the European Union as well.

Parallel to the EU subject matter, security policy related co-operation has become important. Estonia highly appreciates Polish support for Estonia�s accession to NATO.

Regular bilateral meetings take place with the heads of parliament and different commissions. An Estonian-Polish parliamentary group has been established in the X Riigikogu, which has 11 members and is headed by V�ino Linde. A Polish-Estonian Friendship group has been�established also in Seim.�The Group has 10 members and is headed by Halina Olendzka.

Agreements

• Agreement on Cultural and Scientific Co-operation (came into force 28.01.93);
• Agreement on the Abolishment of Visa Requirements (came into force 02.03.93);
• Agreement on Friendly Co-operation and Neighbourliness of the Baltic Sea States (came into force 06.05.93);
• Agreement on the Reciprocal Promotion and Protection of Investments (came into force 06.08.93);
• Agreement on International Road Transport (came into force 30.10.93);
• Agreement on Co-operation Between Region and Local Governments (came into force 24.01.94);
• Agreement on the Avoidance of Double Taxation Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income and on Capital (came into force 09.12.94);
• Agreement Concerning Civil Air Transport (came into force 06.11.95);
• Consular Agreement (came into force 12.01.97);
• Agreement on Rendering Legal Aid and Legal Relations in Civil, Work and Criminal Matters (came into force 08.02.00);
• Agreement on Mutual Protection of Classified Information (signed 12.05.03, came into force 09.06.05);
• Agreement on the Fight Against Organised Crime and Other Criminal Activities (came into force 07.02.04);
• Agreement on Co-operation in Tourism (signed 22.09.04).

After accession to the European Union, Estonia has terminated all free trade agreements with third party states. Thus, Estonia has terminated its free trade agreement with Poland along with other economic agreements. The economic relations are regulated by the regulations of the EU's internal market.

Economic Relations

TRADE

* Pre and post 1 May 2004 data are incomparable. After accession to the EU, the import is calculated on the basis of the sending country, earlier this was based on the country of origin.

In 2006 Poland was Estonia�s 11th largest trade partner with a total trade turnover of 485.7 million EUR, or 2.3% of total Estonian trade.

In 2006 Estonia exported goods worth 89.4 million EUR and Poland was Estonias�s 17th largest export partner. Estonia imported goods worth 415.4 million EUR, ranking Poland as 7th largest import partner for Estonia. Compared to the same period last year Estonian exports to Poland grew by 27% and imports from Poland by 32%.

Main export articles to Poland�in 2006:

• Ferrous metals� 24.6%
• Wood and wood products � 16.2%
• Electrical machinery and equipment � 7.2%
• Plastic and plastic products � 7.2%

Main import articles from Poland�in 2006:

• Means of transport � 9.7%
• Electrical machinery and equipment � 8.9%
• Machinery and equipment � 7.6%
• Plastic and plastic products � 7.1%

All economic figures originate from the from the Statistical Office of Estonia

Poland is Estonia�s largest Central European trade partner. Trade between the two countries has been growing since 1993. In following the dynamics of Estonian-Polish trade, it can be said that Poland is a stable and firm trade partner. This is shown by the fact that trade with Poland has grown similar to the growth of Estonia's total trade.

The increases in trade volumes over the years have varied greatly. While total trade volume has grown almost�twelve times since 1995 and the import of Polish products into Estonia has grown almost�21.5 times, the export of Estonian products to Poland has grown only�four times.

There are several reasons for this. One reason was the absence of a free trade agreement between the two countries until the beginning of 1999. While Estonian entrepreneurs were hindered in their access to the Polish market, Estonia employed a duty-free foreign trade policy. Secondly, Polish goods have been quite popular in Estonia due to the favourable relation between price and quality. However, Estonian goods are not well known in Poland.

INVESTMENTS

According to the Bank of Estonia, as of 31 December 2006, Estonian investments to Poland amounted -6.2 million EUR. The position of Polish foreign direct investments to Estonia was 4.5 million EUR.

TOURISM

Since the end of March 2000, a regular bus line was launched between Estonia and Poland. In October 2000, the Polish airline LOT re-established regular air traffic between Tallinn and Warsaw.

Cultural Relations

Music

For decades, the followers of the avant-garde have esteemed composer Krysztof Penderecki. A great event in 1999 was the performance of Penderecki�s oratorio "The Seven Gates of Jerusalem" by Polish soloists and the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, with the maestro himself participating in the event.

A place in the international classical music calendar has been made for the International Chopin Music Competition for Young Pianists held in Narva and Kohtla-J�rve.

Arvo P�rt's compositions have gained recognition in Poland. It was in Poland that world-famous Estonian composer Arvo P�rt won his first international prize at the beginning of the 1960s at the Warsaw Autumn competition. Throughout the years, many Estonian musicians have received advanced training in the Chopin Academy in Poland.

In July 2001, the Estonian mixed choir "Noorus" participated in the international choral festival of Suwalk in Poland. It was followed by the performances of "Noorus" in Krakow, Wroclaw and Warzaw.

Art

Estonian graphic art has achieved good results at the Krakow International Graphic Art Triennial.

In March 2000, the Estonian Embassy with help from the Estonian History Museum organised a photo exhibition about the history of Estonia in the History Museum of Warsaw. In May, the exhibition "The Maps of Livonia" took place in Gdańsk Town Hall. The exhibition was realized thanks to the help of Estonians living in Gdańsk. In June 2000, the exhibition was also shown in the city archives of Warsaw.

In March 2001, an ethnographic photo exhibition of the Estonian island of Kihnu took place in Poland, which was organised in concert by the Estonian Embassy and the Estonian society Pro Estonia. The authors of the photos were Radosław Surowiec and Rafał Kołaciński, ethnographers from Warsaw University.

In February 2004, the Embassy in co-operation with the Wielkopolskie province organised an exhibition of Arvo Iho photographs along with an exhibition of Estonian bank notes in Poznan.

Theatre, Cinema, Dance

Estonian theatre has traditionally been successful at the Contact Festival of Toruń. The 1992 Grand Prix was awarded to "The Punjaba Pot Works of Epp Pillapardi" by Priit Pedajas. Estonian theatres have often staged plays by such writers as Grotowski, Mrożek, Roszewicz, Andrzejewski and Schaeffer.

Estonian films have also competed and won prizes at Polish film festivals. For example, �lo Pikkov�s film "Bermuda" won "the Silver Dinosaur" at the international film-festival "Etiuda '98" in Krakow. In 1997, Valentin Kuik's documentary film "Flight" won the Grand Prix at the International "At Home" Ethnic Television Festival. The films "The Hotel of the Perished Alpinist", "Navigator Pirx" and "The Curse of the Valley of Snakes" made through Estonian-Polish co-operation became box-office hits in Estonia and Poland.

In November, the Estonian Embassy organised a weeklong presentation of Estonian films in co-operation with the Polish Film Committee and Film Polski. During the film week, the films "Georgica", "The Highway Crossing", "An Affair of Honour", "All my Lenins" and "Dear Mister Moon" were shown.

Literature

During the past decades, the works of Sienkiewicz, �eromski, Dąbrowska and Milośći have been introduced to Estonian readers through the translations of Hendrik Lindepuu, Aleksander Kurtna and Ruth Karem�e. Polish readers would be familiar with the works of Estonians Tammsaare, Kross, Valton and Niit.

In 1997, the Estonian National Library in co-operation with the Polish National Library and the Polish Embassy opened an exhibition of Polish literature consisting of more than 100 books.

Translator Ruth Karem�e was chosen in the autumn of 2002 along with 16 people to receive a special diploma from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland for helping introduce Poland to the world.

In June 2001, the presentation of the book "From Versailles to Westerplatten: Estonian-Polish Relations Between the Two World Wars" by Prof. Raimo Pullat, the distinguished researcher of Estonian-Polish relations, took place in Warsaw. The Estonian translation of the Polish national epic "Pan Tadeusz" was also introduced.

In March 2003, Raimo Pullat's book dedicated to Estonian-Polish bilateral relations "From Versailles to Westerplatten" was released in Polish in Warsaw and Krakow.

In January 2004, the Estonian Embassy along with the editor�s office of the Polish literature magazine "Dekada Literacka" released a special issue dedicated to Estonia.

Other

In November 1999, the Estonian Embassy in Poland in co-operation with the Warsaw Centre of Culture organised Estonian Days, during which the photo exhibition "The Colours of Estonian Islands" was shown, a piano concert took place presenting the works of Erkki-Sven T��r, Estonian poet Aarne Puu read his poems and the films of Mark Soosaar "The Kihnu Woman" and "Miss Saaremaa" were shown.

The Co-operation Agreement in the Field of Culture extended in January 2000 is meant to tighten the ties between Estonia and Poland in the cultural sphere. Estonian and Polish cultural contacts can also be viewed in the context of the cultural co-operation programme of the Baltic Sea States "ARS Baltica", where a number of co-operative projects including Polish and Estonian artists and performers have been carried out.

From April to November 2002, the Baltic Culture Centre located in Gdansk organized a project "New Estonia 2002" to promote Estonian culture. Within the framework of this project: a hundred Estonian cultural figures visited Poland. A grandiose exhibition of modern art was arranged, where Erki Otsman and Hortus Musicus gave concerts, and both children and adult book writers made sightseeing trips in Poland. The press positively reviewed the project. The Estonian Embassy gave support to the organizers.

Estonians in Poland

The exact number of Estonians living in Poland is not available, but the Estonian Embassy estimates there to be between 50 and 100 expatriates. The uniting link for Poland's Estonians has so far been the Estonian Embassy and the Embassy's information bulletin "Circular Letter of Estonians in Poland", which has been published since March 2001.

Friendship Societies

The Polish-Estonian Friendship Association has been in operation since 1993, its chairman Mieczyslaw Maciejak was awarded the order of Terra Mariana 4th class in February 2002. The Polish-Estonian Friendship Association is composed of people interested in Estonia and organises regular cultural and economic events.

In March 2001, the Warsaw City Court registered the society Pro Estonia that helps to unite students and promotes Estonian culture in Poland. Besides culture, Pro Estonia also promotes the Estonian economy and politics by organizing various events and conferences. The Society has its own statutes, a 5-member board and a total of some 20 members, so-called estophiles residing in Poland. Pro Estonia has been very helpful to the Embassy in introducing Estonia in Poland.

Poles in Estonia

According to the 2000 census, 2,145 people (0.1% of the population) indicated their nationality as "Polish" of which a majority reside in the bigger cities (Tallinn, Narva, Kohtla-J�rve). Most of them arrived in Estonia after World War II, immigrating from Poland's former Eastern provinces (Galicia, present-day Western Ukraine), but also from Central Asia, for example Poles deported to Kazakhstan after World War II and their offspring.

The Poles in Estonia are united by the Estonian-Polish Society "Polonia" that publishes a Polish language information bulletin Nasza Polonia ("Our Polonia") and in co-operation with Latvian and Lithuanian Poles publishes the bulletin Nasz Czas ("Our Time").

The Estonian-Polish Society has existed in Estonia since 1930, whereas its founding was preceded by mutual visits by the heads of state. The Honorary Chairman of the Society in the 1930s and 1940s was General Johan Laidoner. The Society was re-established in 1965 during Khrushchev's "thaw" as the Estonian-Polish Friendship Association, but after the restoration of the Republic of Estonia it was renamed the Estonian-Polish Society, in reference to the early years of the society and to Laidoner's activities. The Estonian-Polish Society has 40 members and their main areas of activity are cultural exchanges and the exchange of journalists.

In 2001, the Pro Polonia Society was founded in Tartu to unite Estonian students who are interested in Poland.