Ambassador Hartelius recollected in his speech delivered in Estonian that, after the reestablishment of Estonian independence, the bilateral relations between Sweden and Estonia had advanced rapidly in all areas, the countries had cooperated well with each other and their political relations had remained good no matter which political parties had been in power. The Ambassador noted that Estonia and Sweden had many similar views and they were definitely in a position to continue their cooperation in the European Union as well.
President Rüütel said in his speech that Estonia was certainly to gain from the situation where Sweden had appointed its Ambassador a man for whom, in his words, Estonia had been a dream and love story since 1986. The President of the Republic thanked the Kingdom of Sweden for having supported Estonia's efforts to join the European Union and NATO, and expanded on the good relationship and steady cooperation between Estonia and Sweden. President Rüütel deemed it necessary that our good cooperation be extended into new areas like establishing scientific contacts, environmental protection and security.
Office of the President
Kadriorg, August 21, 2003
