Oleg Ossinovski: Estonians Must Learn to Live Next to an Empire
Oleg Ossinovski, Estonia's richest man and father of Education Minister Jevgeni Ossinovski, said it is not easy living next to an empire, but Estonians must learn to live with the reality.
Ossinovski told Postimees in an interview today that Estonia can learn to live with Russia next door, as did Finland when it profited from selling goods to the Soviet Union, or Hong Kong, which existed for 50 years next to a communist China, adding that Estonia is yet to learn how to live next to Russia.
Speaking about the current crisis, Ossinovski, who is in the transit business, said his company has been hit hard and staff will be cut, and the the weakening ruble has also done its part.
Skinest Rail, owned by Ossinovski, sells and repairs train rolling stock in the Baltics, Ukraine and Russia. The company had an excellent year in 2013, increasing Ossinovski's fortune by 75 million to 300 million euros.