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Tallinn: which geostrategic position for the Estonian capital?

  • check-in
  • 9 avr. 2019
  • 4 min de lecture

Tallinn, Estonia's capital, is located on the coast of the Gulf of Finland and has the main port of the Baltic Sea. From 1720, Estonian territory became a region of the Russian Empire, until the collapse of the Empires at the end of the First World War. But in 1940, after being invaded by the Soviet army, the Republic of Estonia lost its independence once again by becoming the fifteenth Soviet Socialist Republic. However, it regained its independence in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union. A large number of monuments located in Tallinn remind us of a common past with the eastern neighbor, such as the Orthodox Cathedral built by Alexander III, under the Russianification policy. (Conducted during the second half of the 19th century.) However, Estonia constantly reaffirms its desire to be part of Europe, especially by joining the European Union in 2004.


A city connected to Europe


Until the 2000s, the Baltic States were only slightly connected to the European rail network. Indeed, it was necessary to cross Russia to connect Tallinn to the rest of Europe. In the 1990s, the idea of creating a railway linking the Estonian capital to Warsaw was born. "Rail Baltica" is one of the priority projects of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) to link the Baltic capitals to Europe. This project has been coordinated since the early 2000s by all the Baltic countries and Poland. One of the major challenges is a technical one: more than 1000 kilometres of rail track must be laid according to the European rail gauge standard. (Editor's note: this differs from the standard in use in the former Soviet Union) In 2005, a feasibility study on the "Rail Baltica" was carried out by the European Commission, and a report was published in 2007. Infrastructure construction is expected to begin in 2019 and be completed by 2026. This line would then enable the transport of goods, but also passengers, to be improved.



Route of the "Rail Baltica", to link Tallinn to Warsaw

Tallinn is also a city integrated into European air networks. Indeed, since the 1990s, the destinations available from Tallinn have been increasingly oriented towards the West. The neighbouring Scandinavian cities were the first to be connected to the Estonian capital. Then, from the mid-1990s, Western European cities began to be connected to the Baltic capital: London, Amsterdam and Hamburg. This expansion continued in the 2000s with the creation of connections to Oslo, Warsaw and Vienna. However, the result of this desire to establish a strong foothold in the West was achieved more between 2003 and 2007, with around ten lines created towards the main European capitals. (Berlin, Paris...) This also coincides with Estonia's entry into the European Union.



(Vincent Dautancourt, The City of Tallinn: the ambitions and geopolitical challenges of a "small" European capital) - The Tallinn aerial anchorage


An economy increasingly oriented towards Europe


The Tallinn economy is also strongly oriented towards Europe, at the expense of its Russian neighbour. At the time of its independence in 1991, Estonia gave up the ruble in favour of the Norwegian krone and then the euro from 2011 onwards. In terms of trade relations, Estonia is also gradually moving away from Russia by favouring European partners. In addition, after the annexation of Crimea, Estonia participated as an EU member in trade sanctions against Russia. Thus, in 2015, only 5% of Estonian exports were destined for the Russian Federation.


At the same time, Russia has decided to pursue a policy of disengagement from the Baltic ports, including the one in Tallinn. Indeed, this port is a strategic location in trade relations between Europe and Russia. This continent-state lost the Baltic ports after the independence of the Soviet Socialist Republics and therefore wants to pursue a policy of building new infrastructure on its territory. As a result, goods would no longer transit through the port of Tallinn.



In a context of weak Russian-Estonian relations


Tallinn therefore wants to be a capital fully connected to Europe, to the detriment of its Russian neighbour. This happens in a national context hostile to Russia. Due to a tumultuous common heritage, Russian-Estonian relations are vulnerable. Indeed, since the annexation of Crimea by Russia, the Estonian authorities have feared Russian expansionism. NATO (of which Estonia has been a member since 2004) then decided to act by increasing military presence on the Russian-Estonian border.


These disputes are also embodied in a conflict between the two states over the Russian-speaking populations of Estonia, who live mainly in the border territories and the capital. According to the Russian authorities, the Estonian State is discriminating against Russian-speaking individuals, for example by trying to limit the use of this language. These differentiations are visible in Tallinn: most of them are marginalized, often living on the outskirts of the city.


Photo by Alessandro Gandofi who has devoted himself to photojournalism and Russian-Estonian relations. Russian-speaking district, on the outskirts of Tallinn.


In short, Tallinn seems to want to increase its connections with Europe, and is trying to break away from its centuries-old ties with Russia. This occurs in a context of deteriorated Russian-Estonian relations.


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