It's Official: Tallinn To Become EU's IT Headquarters
Published: 09.06.2011 18:09
Photo: Postimees/Scanpix
On June 9, European Union ministers approved a compromise made by the European Parliament and Council of the EU to establish the headquarters of the EU's IT-agency in Tallinn.
Estonia and France had been tussling over the rights to host the new agency until they reached a sharing agreement last year. The body will be inaugurated in 2012.
Media outlets had earlier reported that Tallinn's bid to host the agency's headquarters was a done deal, however the June 9 decision made at the Justice and Home Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg makes it official.
"While the location of the agency was already decided months ago, today's compromise removed the last obstacles set by the council for establishing the agency," said Minister of the Interior Ken-Marti Vaher, adding that any additional postponement would jeopardize the EU's goal of ensuring internal security.
The agency's task will be to manage and develop the EU's large-scale IT systems.
While the organization's main building will be located in Tallinn, its data storage centers will be housed in Strasbourg and in the small Austrian town of Sankt Johann im Pongau.
Ingrid Teesalu