[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 37 (Wednesday, February 25, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Page S657]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                       Estonian Independence Day

  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, a few days ago, I stood here and 
congratulated Lithuania on its Independence Day. Well, there is another 
Baltic State that had Independence Day yesterday, the country of 
Estonia. Just as we celebrate Independence Day on the anniversary of 
our Declaration of Independence, yesterday marked the anniversary of 
Estonia's Declaration of Independence in 1918.
  The United States established diplomatic relations with Estonia 4 
years later in 1922, and that recognition and relationship with Estonia 
has continued uninterrupted until today. That is right. We even had 
accredited Estonian diplomats working in the United States throughout 
the 50 years that Estonia was illegally occupied by the Soviet Union 
and Moscow considered Estonia as a legitimate part of the Soviet Union.
  So we never gave up on Estonia's freedom. That is something that we 
Americans can be proud of: standing by our friends.
  Today, Estonia is very free, very prosperous, and very pro-American.