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Estonia and United States sign an agreement on the protection of classified information

Republic of Estonia - Ministry of Foreign Affairs

21.11.2023

Yesterday 20 November, Estonian Ambassador Kristjan Prikk and Michael Laychak, Director of the Defense Technology Security Administration at the Department of Defense, signed the agreement on classified information between the two countries at the Estonian embassy in Washington. The agreement sets out the conditions for the exchange and protection of classified information in Estonia and in the United States.

Ambassador Prikk said at the signing that whereas the first analogous agreement between Estonia and the United States was signed as early as 2000, we have now taken the next step. "While Estonia's cooperation with the United States has been excellent in every area, the new agreement reflects a further expansion of cooperation between our two countries. The new agreement helps to improve the exchange of classified information, especially in foreign relations, cybersecurity and cooperation between police structures. The agreement also provides additional possibilities for Estonian companies who would like to expand to the US market and take part in classified tenders," the ambassador added.

The agreement on the protection of classified information is an international agreement aimed at providing maximum mutual protection for the state secrets of both Estonia and the United States in line with international law. Estonia has agreements of this kind with 32 close partners. The first analogous agreement between Estonia and the United States was signed in 2000 but it only covered the principles of the protection of the classified military information of the two countries. The new agreement establishes the grounds for the exchange of all classified information. The agreement will be registered at the UN Secretariat and published in Riigi Teataja after it has entered into force.

Additional information can be found on the website of the Estonia National Security Authority, which is supervising the implementation of the agreement - https://nsa.valisluureamet.ee