Tarmo Kõuts
Encyclopedia
Tarmo Kõuts is an Estonia
n politician and former commander-in-chief
of the Estonian Defence Forces.
Kõuts graduated from Tallinn Maritime School in 1973 and from Kaliningrad Technical Institute in 1985. From 1973 to 1990 he worked in various positions in the Estonian Shipping Company
. He served as the rector of Estonian Maritime Academy
from 1990 to 1993 and as the director-general of Estonian Border Guard from 1993 to 2000.
In September 2000 Rear Admiral
Kõuts was appointed commander of the Estonian Defence Forces. Having been promoted to the rank of Vice Admiral
in 2002, Kõuts retained the position until 2006, when he stepped down to move into politics. He joined the right-wing Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica
and successfully ran for a seat in the parliament
in the 2007 elections
.
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
n politician and former commander-in-chief
Commander-in-Chief
A commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the military...
of the Estonian Defence Forces.
Kõuts graduated from Tallinn Maritime School in 1973 and from Kaliningrad Technical Institute in 1985. From 1973 to 1990 he worked in various positions in the Estonian Shipping Company
Estonian Shipping Company
Eesti Merelaevandus or ESCO, also called Estonian Shipping Company is an Estonian shipping company that currently operates eight multipurpose dry cargo and container ships. Technical management of the ships is performed by First Baltic Shipmanagement. The company is owned by the Tschudi Group that...
. He served as the rector of Estonian Maritime Academy
Estonian Maritime Academy
-External links:...
from 1990 to 1993 and as the director-general of Estonian Border Guard from 1993 to 2000.
In September 2000 Rear Admiral
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
Kõuts was appointed commander of the Estonian Defence Forces. Having been promoted to the rank of Vice Admiral
Vice Admiral
Vice admiral is a senior naval rank of a three-star flag officer, which is equivalent to lieutenant general in the other uniformed services. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral...
in 2002, Kõuts retained the position until 2006, when he stepped down to move into politics. He joined the right-wing Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica
Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica
Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica is an Estonian Liberal Conservative political party. It was founded on 4 June 2006 when two conservative parties, Pro Patria Union and Res Publica merged. Up to the 2007 parliamentary elections, the party held 32 seats out of 101 in the Riigikogu and one of...
and successfully ran for a seat in the parliament
Riigikogu
The Riigikogu is the unicameral parliament of Estonia. All important state-related questions pass through the Riigikogu...
in the 2007 elections
Estonian parliamentary election, 2007
Parliamentary elections took place in Estonia on Sunday, March 4, 2007 to elect members of the Riigikogu. The electoral system was a two-tier semi-open list proportional representation system with a 5% election threshold...
.