* Unfortunately, Estonia is always used as an 'example' of successful economic transition by transitologists, free market airheads, and assorted antlanticist neo-liberals. It was ever thus. The trail of hagiography of this kind goes back to Mart Laar (remember him ?) who made a kind of cottage industry out of this kind of propaganda.
The truth is much more complex, however. The real transition catalyst was the rapid growth of of an independent and entrepreneurial service sector. This would have happened anyway, irrespective of the policies of the administration at the time. Why ? Because of Estonia's strategic position - its closeness to Finland and its function as a transit economy, serving Russia and the CIS.
There was no real free-market transition strategy. Decisions, such as the introduction of the kroon and several privatisations, were taken in response to events, not as part of some master plan.
This is not to disparage what has been achieved. Far from it ! But one must look at areas of the economy where there is still no coherent development strategy, and realise that one cannot persist in quoting these free-market myths for ever....
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