Eesti in brief - 2007-04-25

  • 2007-04-25
Only 23 percent of young men eligible for compulsory military service were found fully fit to be drafted, and 15 percent of all conscripts were granted early release because of stress or health problems, figures from the Ministry of Defense show. Two out of every five young men had muscular or skeletal problems, while one in eight had mental or behavioral problems. The Estonian defense force also faced difficulties recruiting soldiers because many draftees failed to show up, according to the report published in Eesti Paevaleht. "Several options are being analyzed right now of how to make conscript service more effective, but no decisions have been made," Maj. Madis Kraav from the Defense Ministry told the paper.

In a recent poll of EU residents, Estonians were found to have the most optimistic view of their prospects for improved living standards. According to the Eurobarometer poll, as many as 60 percent of Estonians believe their standard of living will improve over the next five years, compared to the EU-wide average of 41 percent. A full 69 percent of them said their life has improved over the past five years. In this category they were followed closely by Latvia and Ireland, who tied for second place at 62 percent. The most negative outlook on the future was given by Hungarians, 46 percent of whom say that life has deteriorated during the past five years and 38 percent of whom fear the situation will go from bad to worse during the next five years.

Estonia marked International Earth Day on April 22 with a call for each resident to plant 45 trees. According to Statistics Estonia, Estonia is one of the biggest emitters of greenhouse gases in the European Union, and needs more trees to absorb its carbon dioxide output. Estonia is also the second-biggest producer of hazardous waste, coming second only to Germany, and extracts the third-largest amount of groundwater. Most of the pollution came from Estonia's oil shale electricity production. "The quantity of hazardous wastes generated in one year in Estonia could cover the Estonian terrestrial territory with a layer of 0.008 cm," Statistics Estonia said.

Estonia plans to appoint an honorary consul in Peru, Foreign Minister Urmas Paet said. Speaking at a foreign ministers' meeting in Rio de Janeiro, Paet said he was searching for a suitable person to serve in the role to bring both countries closer together. Peru already has an honorary consul in Tartu, but is also seeking an office-holder in Tallinn.

Air connections between Tallinn and Amsterdam have increased. Air France KLM commenced a second daily service between the two cities on April 24. The airline already departs Tallinn for Amsterdam each morning, and now also operates evening services. The extra flight will use an 80-seat Fokker 70 aircraft.