TALLINN (Sputnik) — It would not be reasonable for Estonia to seek reparations from Russia for damages sustained during the so-called Soviet occupation, Estonian Foreign Minister Sven Mikser said Thursday.
"Estonia will not seek reparations from Russia for the ‘occupation’ … For a small country that considers itself stable and safe, it is unwise to demand it. I do not consider it reasonable to make claims and demands that have no future and not understood by our key business partners," Mikser told the Estonian Public Broadcasting.
It was Estonian Justice Minister Urmas Reinsalu's personal initiative to sign a memorandum on the reparations last year, Mikser underlined.
Russia, the Soviet Union’s successor state, disputes the Baltic republics’ classification of the Soviet period as "occupation," and maintains that their inclusion in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) adhered to international norms of the time.
The Russian Foreign Ministry argues that the term "occupation" does not apply because there were no military actions taken between the USSR and the Baltic states, while troops were deployed based on mutual agreements and with the explicit consent of the respective national leadership.
