ABSTRACT
Gigi Mihaita begins with a historical account of how nearly 12 per cent of the population of Estonia have come to be non-citizens. In the context of the European Union integration, the situation created problems due to its discriminatory aspects. As a response, the Estonian Citizenship Act was amended while the EU recognised the status of “permanent EU resident” for the non-citizens of Estonia. Nevertheless, Mihaita cautions that the new measures may not be sufficient as a significant part of the Russian community still has stronger links to their historic homeland than to their country of permanent residence.
