Stamp marking centenary of diplomatic ties between Estonia, US to be presented Friday

TALLINN - A postage stamp issued to celebrate the centenary of diplomatic relations between Estonia and the United States will be presented at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tallinn on Friday.

The first postage stamp will get the first stamp of issue at the large press room of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday at 9:30 a.m.

The stamp will be presented by secretary general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Jonatan Vseviov, US charge d’affaires Brian R. Roraff and postal services company Omniva CEO Mart Magi.

The presentation of the stamp is followed by an academic conference exploring the relations between the Baltic states and the United States from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., with former president Toomas Hendrik Ilves making the opening remarks.

Professor Andres Kasekamp from the University of Toronto and associate professor Kaarel Piirimae from the University of Tartu together with their academic colleagues from the universities of London, Kaunas, Georgia and Greifswald will look at the cooperation and history of the Baltic states and the United States.

The jointly issued stamp depicts symbols treasured by both nations -- the national flags of Estonia and the United States. It is also significant that this year also marks the centenary of the adoption of the blue, black and white flag as Estonia’s national flag. A hundred years ago, the musical piece "Eesti Lipp" ("Estonian Flag") was composed, with music by Enn Vork and lyrics by Martin Lipp. 

The stamp was designed by Indrek Ilves and it was printed at the Vaba Maa printing house. The print run of the stamp is 20,000 with the nominal of 1.90 euros and it can be posted internationally. In addition to the stamp, the traditional first day of issue envelope and information card is issued.