Estonia: Export Control Overview

Estonia's export control system was first established in 1994 to reflect the country's commitment to the principles of the international organizations and agreements in which it participates. The law On Export and Transit of Strategic Goods was adopted by the Riigikogu (parliament) on 6 April 1994. This law and other legislation passed the same year were based on the guidelines of the Australia Group, the Nuclear Suppliers Group, the Missile Technology Control Regime, and the now-defunct COCOM. In 1999, new export control legislation and regulations were introduced that reflect regulations of the EU (to which Estonia hopes to gain entry) and international export control regimes.[1]
 
Estonia is one of the world's leading exporters of rare metals, some of which have nuclear weapons applications. According to Russian officials, prior to the establishment of the export control system, dual-use materials that eventually came into the possession of states seeking to develop nuclear weapons were exported from Estonia. In 1992, large Estonian shipments of zirconium were seized by Finnish customs officers, and Russian authorities intercepted a shipment of four tons of Russian zirconium on its way to Estonia. (The shipment was ostensibly meant for the jewelry-manufacturing industry, but the amount and grade of zirconium were incompatible with such purposes.) It is unknown whether the Estonian government knew of or condoned these exports.[2]
 
During the May 1994 Conference of European Nonproliferation Experts, Deputy Foreign Minister Indrik Tarand  noted that the large number of governmental organizations involved in the Estonian export control system should serve to counteract the growing presence of organized crime groups that are using Estonia as a transshipment point.[3] According to Export Control Commission Executive Secretary Toomas Raba, as of 2001, an average of three firms are caught and fined for violating export control legislation every year; criminal charges are pressed against one firm per year.[4]
Sources:
[1] "Export Controls in Estonia," Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Web Site, http://www.vm.ee/Export_Control/expconest.htm. 
[2] William C. Potter, "Nuclear Exports from the Former Soviet Union: What's New, What's True," Arms Control Today, January-February 1993, pp. 3-10.
[3] Indrik Tarand, "Export Controls in Estonia," paper presented at the Conference of European Nonproliferation Experts, Peace Research Institute of Frankfurt,  Freudenstadt, Germany, May 1994. 
[4] NISNP correspondence with Estonian Export Control Commission Official, 28 March 2001, EST010328. {Revised 3/28/01 LBN}