Russia takes minor steps in border treaty ratification
A committee tasked with preparing bills for government approval has passed the Russian-Estonian border treaty bill on to the government, after earlier approval by the Russian Foreign Ministry.
The Russian government said on its website it plans to discuss the bill.
Not much official news has come from Russia on the subject of the treaty after the foreign ministers of Estonia and Russia signed the treaty on February 18 last year.
During the last months, Russian politicians have sent mixed signals with one high-level politician saying the current political climate in the region does not bode well for ratification while Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said a month ago that ratification could soon go ahead.
Lavrov said in January that his country could soon be ready to go ahead with the Russian-Estonian border treaty. “I am certain that the treaty will be ratified. In Estonia, this process has not been completed yet, either. In Russia it is the government’s prerogative to initiate the ratification process by submitting a corresponding bill to the State Duma. I hope that we will start this process in the near future.”
Estonia has already submitted the bill to its parliament, passing the first reading last April.
Estonia has said it will ratify the treaty at the same time as Russia, saying there is no rush to sign the treaty, but there are also no objections from its point of view.
Editor: J.M. Laats