| Revision as of 13:00, 19 June 2007 editRJ CG (talk | contribs)1,417 edits Removed Vatican from list of democratic countries. It is Western but not democratic.← Previous edit | Revision as of 18:29, 4 July 2007 edit undoRJ CG (talk | contribs)1,417 edits There was no govt in exile during Nazi rule, there was indigenous administration in Estonia established by the German occupation forces.Next edit → | ||
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| The '''Estonian Government in Exile''' was a cabinet of statesmen in exile that existed from ] to ], and was recognized by major democracies as the rightful government of the ] which had been ] by, and annexed into, the ] during that time. ], ], ], and other democratic nations considered the annexation of Estonia (along with ] and ]) into the USSR illegal, and did not recognize Estonia as a legal constituent part of the USSR, nor have diplomatic relations with the authorities of the ]. | The '''Estonian Government in Exile''' was a cabinet of statesmen in exile that existed from ] to ] (despite the continued service of diplomats of the Estonian Republic in several countries, there was no Estonian government in exile during ] between 1941 and 1944<ref> Estonian International Commission for the Investigation of Crimes Against Humanity: | ||
| </ref>), and was recognized by major democracies as the rightful government of the ] which had been ] by, and annexed into, the ] during that time. ], ], ], and other democratic nations considered the annexation of Estonia (along with ] and ]) into the USSR illegal, and did not recognize Estonia as a legal constituent part of the USSR, nor have diplomatic relations with the authorities of the ]. | |||
| After the Soviet Union had annexed ] in the summer of 1940, ] ] was arrested by the new authorities. He eventually died as a prisoner in USSR in ]. After Päts was arrested, ] ] became the Prime Minister in the duties of the President. According to Section 46 the then Estonian Constitution (''Riigi Teataja'' 03.09.1937 No. 71 Art 590), when the office of the President of the Republic of Estonia is vacant, or the President of the Republic can not perform his duties as in cases as specified by law, the duties of the President were to be performed by the Prime Minister. According to Section 52, in case both the Prime Minister and his Deputy were incapable of performing the duties of the Prime Minister, they were to be fulfilled by the eldest member of the Government. After the arrest of Konstantin Päts the Government of ] went underground and continued work as constitutional authority without effective power. After Soviets had arrested most of cabinet members, the rest of them, including Uluots, fled to ] in 1944, where they became representatives of Estonian interests as government in exile. In 1945, after the death of Jüri Uluots, the eldest member of the Government appointed by Jüri Uluots (with ] as the Deputy Prime Minister) was ], the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who assumed his position after the death of Jüri Uluots. The Prime Minister in the duties of the President assumed office in the same way until 1992. | After the Soviet Union had annexed ] in the summer of 1940, ] ] was arrested by the new authorities. He eventually died as a prisoner in USSR in ]. After Päts was arrested, ] ] became the Prime Minister in the duties of the President. According to Section 46 the then Estonian Constitution (''Riigi Teataja'' 03.09.1937 No. 71 Art 590), when the office of the President of the Republic of Estonia is vacant, or the President of the Republic can not perform his duties as in cases as specified by law, the duties of the President were to be performed by the Prime Minister. According to Section 52, in case both the Prime Minister and his Deputy were incapable of performing the duties of the Prime Minister, they were to be fulfilled by the eldest member of the Government. After the arrest of Konstantin Päts the Government of ] went underground and continued work as constitutional authority without effective power. After Soviets had arrested most of cabinet members, the rest of them, including Uluots, fled to ] in 1944, where they became representatives of Estonian interests as government in exile. In 1945, after the death of Jüri Uluots, the eldest member of the Government appointed by Jüri Uluots (with ] as the Deputy Prime Minister) was ], the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who assumed his position after the death of Jüri Uluots. The Prime Minister in the duties of the President assumed office in the same way until 1992. | ||
Revision as of 18:29, 4 July 2007
The Estonian Government in Exile was a cabinet of statesmen in exile that existed from 1940 to 1992 (despite the continued service of diplomats of the Estonian Republic in several countries, there was no Estonian government in exile during Occupation of Estonia by Nazi Germany between 1941 and 1944), and was recognized by major democracies as the rightful government of the Republic of Estonia which had been occupied by, and annexed into, the Soviet Union during that time. United States, United Kingdom, France, and other democratic nations considered the annexation of Estonia (along with Latvia and Lithuania) into the USSR illegal, and did not recognize Estonia as a legal constituent part of the USSR, nor have diplomatic relations with the authorities of the Estonian SSR.
After the Soviet Union had annexed Estonia in the summer of 1940, President Konstantin Päts was arrested by the new authorities. He eventually died as a prisoner in USSR in 1956. After Päts was arrested, Prime Minister Jüri Uluots became the Prime Minister in the duties of the President. According to Section 46 the then Estonian Constitution (Riigi Teataja 03.09.1937 No. 71 Art 590), when the office of the President of the Republic of Estonia is vacant, or the President of the Republic can not perform his duties as in cases as specified by law, the duties of the President were to be performed by the Prime Minister. According to Section 52, in case both the Prime Minister and his Deputy were incapable of performing the duties of the Prime Minister, they were to be fulfilled by the eldest member of the Government. After the arrest of Konstantin Päts the Government of Jüri Uluots went underground and continued work as constitutional authority without effective power. After Soviets had arrested most of cabinet members, the rest of them, including Uluots, fled to Sweden in 1944, where they became representatives of Estonian interests as government in exile. In 1945, after the death of Jüri Uluots, the eldest member of the Government appointed by Jüri Uluots (with Otto Tief as the Deputy Prime Minister) was August Rei, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who assumed his position after the death of Jüri Uluots. The Prime Minister in the duties of the President assumed office in the same way until 1992.
The government in exile was recognized formally as the legitimate government of the Republic of Estonia until the recognition of reinstatement of the Republic of Estonia in 1991 by most western powers. They maintained diplomatic relations with many countries.
The last Prime Minister in the duties of the President Heinrich Mark, ended the work of the exile cabinet, handed over his credentials to the incoming President Lennart Meri (served 1992-2001), and formally found new authorities to be rightful representatives of Republic of Estonia, and the reinstated Estonia a continuation of pre-World War II statehood.
List of Prime Ministers in duties of the President in Exile
- Jüri Uluots (June 24, 1940 – July 9, 1945)
- August Rei (January 9, 1945 – March 29, 1963)
- Aleksander Warma (March 29, 1963 – December 23, 1970)
- Tõnis Kint December 23, 1970 – March 1, 1990
- Heinrich Mark (March 1, 1990 – October 8, 1992)
Sources
- Mälksoo, Lauri (2000). Professor Uluots, the Estonian Government in Exile and the Continuity of the Republic of Estonia in International Law. Nordic Journal of International Law 69.3, 289-316.