The original initiative to form the committee came from the Estonian former pre-plebiscite of 1933 opposition parties and it denied the constitutional authority of Jüri Uluots, the last pre-war Prime Minister of the Republic of Estonia.

[3] The Committee aimed to establish a provisional government, during the German withdrawal expected as the Red Army had reached the border of Estonia on February 2, 1944.

The participants included: The Committee determined that the Soviet-era appointment of Johannes Vares as prime minister by Konstantin Päts had been illegal and that Uluots had assumed the President's duties from June 21, 1940, onwards.

[11] Tief’s government, however, failed to stay in power as Estonian military units led by Johan Pitka clashed with both Germans and Soviets.

After Uluots died on January 9, 1945, in Sweden, August Rei, as the most senior surviving member of the government, assumed the role of acting head of state.