Politics in Estonia takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic,whereby the Prime Minister of Estonia is the head of government,and of a multi-party system. Legislative power is vested in the Estonian parliament. Executive power is exercised by the government,which is led by the prime minister. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. Estonia is a member of the United Nations,the European Union,and NATO.
Juhan Parts is an Estonian politician who was Prime Minister of Estonia from 2003 to 2005 and Minister of Economic Affairs and Communications from 2007 to 2014. Juhan Parts is a member of Isamaa party.
Established in 1918,Tallinn University of Technology is the only technical university in Estonia. TalTech,in the capital city of Tallinn,is a university for engineering,business,public administration and maritime affairs. TalTech has colleges in Tartu and Kohtla-Järve. Despite the similar names,Tallinn University and Tallinn University of Technology are separate institutions.
Andrus Ansip is an Estonian politician,a member of the European Parliament,the former European Commissioner for Digital Single Market and Vice President of the European Commission,in office from 2014 until 2019. Previously,he was Prime Minister of Estonia from 2005 to 2014 and chairman of the liberal Estonian Reform Party from 2004 to 2014.
Jaak Jõerüüt is an Estonian writer and politician. He was the defense minister of Estonia from November 2004 to 10 October 2005.
Taavi Veskimägi is a former Estonian state official and politician and the managing director of the Estonian electric power transmission system operator Elering.
Pierre RenéHubert Marie van der Linden is a retired Dutch politician and diplomat of the Catholic People's Party (KVP) and later the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party and economist.
Tõnis Lukas is an Estonian politician,former Minister of Culture from 2019 to 2021 and Minister of Education and Research from 1999 to 2002 and from 2007 to 2011.
Mailis Reps is an Estonian politician,a member of the Estonian Centre Party. She served as the Minister of Education and Research from 2002 to 2003,2005 to 2007 and 2016 to 2020.
Jüri Ratas is an Estonian politician who served as the prime minister of Estonia from 2016 to 2021 and as the leader of the Centre Party from 2016 to 2023,and the mayor of Tallinn from 2005 to 2007. Ratas was a member of the Centre Party until switching to Isamaa in 2024.
Jaak Aaviksoo is an Estonian politician and physicist,a former rector of the University of Tartu and Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech).
Marju Lauristin is an Estonian politician,and former Member of the European Parliament and Minister of Social Affairs. She is a member of the Social Democratic Party,part of the Party of European Socialists. Lauristin is currently a member of the Tartu city council.
The Estonian Academy of Arts is the only public university in Estonia providing higher education in art,design,architecture,media,art history and conservation-restoration. It is based in Tallinn.
Foreign relations exist between Australia and Estonia. Australia first recognised Estonia on 22 September 1921. Australia was among the first countries to re-recognise Estonia's independence on 27 August 1991. Both countries re-established diplomatic relations on 21 November 1991.
Eerik-Niiles Kross is an Estonian politician,diplomat,former chief of intelligence and entrepreneur. He is a member of parliament (Riigikogu). During the 1980s,Kross was a prominent figure in the anti-Soviet non-violent resistance movement in Soviet Estonia. After re-independence,in 1991,he joined Estonia's Foreign Ministry. He served as the head of intelligence from 1995 to 2000;and as national security advisor to former President Lennart Meri in 2000 and 2001.
Parliamentary elections were held in Estonia on 3 March 2019. The newly elected 101 members of the 14th Riigikogu assembled at Toompea Castle in Tallinn within ten days of the election. The Reform Party remained the largest party,gaining four seats for a total of 34 and the Conservative People's Party had the largest gain overall,increasing their seat count by 12 to a total of 19 seats.
Indrek Saar is an Estonian actor and politician. He has been the leader of the Social Democratic Party from 2019 to 2022 and the Minister of Culture of Estonia from 2015 to 2019.
The Ministry of Social Affairs of Estonia is a government ministry of Estonia responsible for social policies of the country.
Jüri Ratas's cabinet was the 49th cabinet of Estonia,in office from 23 November 2016 to 29 April 2019. It was a centre-left coalition cabinet of Centre Party,Social Democratic Party and conservative Pro Patria and Res Publica Union. It was preceded by the Second Cabinet of Taavi Rõivas,a cabinet that ended when Social Democrats and the Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica joined the opposition's no confidence vote against the cabinet. This was the first time since 1999 the liberal centre-right Reform Party were out of the government.
Raimond Kaljulaid is an Estonian politician and a member of the Estonian Parliament since 2019. Kaljulaid was elected in the list of Centre Party,but quit the party in protest of Centre Party's decision to form a coalition cabinet with the Conservative People's Party,and joined the Social Democratic Party in November 2019.
