We will not compromise security in any situation, and if necessary, we have the necessary resources, says Konstantin Nikiforov, project manager at Tartu Prison in southeastern Estonia.
Almost 400 years ago, in Tartu, near the border with today's Russia, Gustav II Adolf founded the city's university. Now up to 600 inmates from Sweden are to be placed in the prison in the city. The first ones will arrive in August. The Prison Service is renting places in Tartu because it is full in Sweden.
Three hundred are hired
Up to 300 guards and other staff, who must speak English, are being hired locally to work with the Swedish inmates. Unlike when working with Estonian inmates, they are not allowed to carry stun guns.
According to the agreement with Sweden, those being transferred must not be gang criminals, have misbehaved, or be security risks.
Tartu Prison is Estonia's oldest, built over 20 years ago but now almost empty of Estonian inmates. Swedish inmates will not be mixed with Estonians.
The inmates from Sweden are placed in the institution's largest building, S-huset. It is a massive, gray concrete box with 400 cells, many of them shared.
Konstantin Nikiforov and the institution's director, Merle Ulst, show around the building, which internally has some similarities to older military barracks.
The cell shown has a toilet, bunk beds, a wall-mounted table and stools, a kettle, two radios, a shelf in two sections with lockable storage drawers. Two smaller flat-screen TVs have been placed side by side, of two different brands, with different remote controls and headphones - but with Swedish channels.
For Estonian inmates, we have night lights on in the cells, but we will not have that for the Swedish ones, says Konstantin Nikiforov.
Snuff white
Some adjustments have been made to make the time here, 200 kilometers from the capital Tallinn on the Gulf of Finland, similar to prison time in Sweden. White snus will be available at the kiosk.
The Swedish inmates will not, like the Estonians, have to pay for electricity. And they can make calls to Sweden for the same price as within Sweden.
Relatives can visit for several days, and overnight rooms are available for rent at the institution.
According to Prison and Probation Service section head Stefan Solhjort, who has been in place since the beginning of August, the average time an inmate will serve in Tartu will be nine months, perhaps slightly longer. However, a sentence will begin and end in Sweden.
Konstantin Nikiforov and the prison's director, Merle Ulst, emphasize that they strive to make life bearable for those who come, but that there are also rules that must be followed. Perhaps they are a little worried that people will imagine harsh prisons of the Russian and Soviet model.
Six hundred is enough
Tartu Prison has 933 places and even if the Prison and Probation Service rents 600, there could be additional capacity.
"I think we should stick to the number in the agreement. Going beyond that is not something we would like to do," says Merle Ulst, but emphasizes that it is primarily a political issue.
Facts: Tartu Prison
Built in the early 2000s.
Space for 933 inmates.
Sweden has signed an agreement with Estonia to place up to 600 detainees in Tartu.
The agreement is for five years, with an option for a further three years.
Sweden pays 8,500 euros per month and inmates, but at least 300 per year, which means a minimum annual cost of just over 330 million kronor.
In Sweden, the cost per month and intern is just over 11,000 euros.
If the Prison and Probation Service were to utilize the entire agreement and place 600 prisoners in Tartu, the annual cost would be approximately SEK 670 million.
