Which Countries Border Estonia?

Trucks on the border between Estonia and Russia.
Trucks on the border between Estonia and Russia.

Officially known as the Republic of Estonia, Estonia is a sovereign nation in Northern Europe. Its capital city is Tallinn. The country is bordered by four countries namely Finland to the north, the west by Sweden, Russia to the east, and Latvia to the south. The borders with Finland and Sweden are maritime ones. To provide a better sense of the country’s location, other geographical features around the country include the Gulf of Finland, the Baltic Sea, and Lake Peipus.

Russia 

The international border between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Estonia has been present since 1954, which is also the tear when Estonia joined the Soviet Union. The border has a length of about 183 miles and has been unchanged since 1954 except for a minor change from 2014, which has still not yet been implemented. Anyone wishing to cross the border can only do so at authorized border controls with most people requiring a visa. These border controls include a local road situated in Narwa, Koidula’s road 63, Saatse’s road 106, and the Tallinn–Narva–St. Petersburg railway (also located in Narwa).

Latvia

From the Latvian side, the border can be crossed using either one of two major land routes. In total, the border between the two countries has a length of about 213.13 miles. One of the routes involves using the Baltika or E67, which goes along the Gulf of Riga’s coast and all the way to Pärnu. After that, the road gets to Tallinn in Estonia. The other route is the E264, which passes through Valga and then gets to Tartu before reaching Tallinn. However, most people prefer flying to Estonia where they land at the Lennart Meri International Airport in Tallinn. Estonia is classified as being part of the Schengen visa area, which means that European Union members only need a national ID or passport to cross. Recently, the two governments came up with an agreement to reintroduce border checks for people wishing to cross. However, the checks were only temporary. Other times similar checks were done was back in 2010 when NATO’s foreign ministers met in Estonia as well as 2014 when President Barack Obama of the US made a visit.

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