Estonia Loses Visionary Statesman Siim Kallas After Leading Currency Reform

Siim Kallas, a former Estonian prime minister who led his country's currency reform, has died at age 77. His daughter, Kaja Kallas, European Union's foreign policy chief and also a former Estonian prime minister, announced her father's death on social media.

Kallas was a key figure in Estonia's transformation from a Soviet republic into a liberal, market-based European state. He led the 1992 currency reform that replaced the Soviet rouble with the Estonian kroon. The kroon was fixed at eight to one against the Deutsche Mark and operated under a strict currency board system.

Kallas also co-founded the Reform Party in 1994 and served as its chairman. He held various government positions, including foreign minister from 1995 to 1996 and finance minister from 1999 to 2002. His government completed Estonia's accession negotiations with the European Union and NATO.