Estonia decides to remove Soviet-era monuments in Narva town

By Burak Dag and Burcu Yagci

ANKARA (AA) - The Estonian government on Tuesday announced its decision to remove all Soviet-era war monuments from public spaces in eastern Narva town.

Estonia’s Narva town, bordering Russia, is heavily populated by Russian-speaking Estonian citizens.

Citing Estonia’s Prime Minister Kaja Kallas' remarks on the decision, the government statement said: "Today’s decision helps to keep our focus on our most important tasks: ensuring Estonia’s security and helping all the people of Estonia weather the crises caused by the war in Ukraine."

Referring to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, Kallas noted: "No one wants to see our militant and hostile neighbor foment tensions in our home."

As the government decided to remove all Soviet-era monuments, a T-34 tank from the Soviet era was decided to be relocated to the Estonian War Museum in the town of Viimsi due to its historical significance.

Shortly after Narva's town council on Aug. 15 decided that the monument should be removed, a large crowd gathered around the monument to protest the decision.

The country’s Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu also asserted that “the Russian Federation and its special services wanted to use the memorials commemorating the criminal occupation regime to fuel tensions in Estonian society," stressing that these monuments were erected “to glorify the reoccupation of Estonia.”

Meanwhile, Estonia’s Interior Minister Lauri Laanemets said: “Considering the current situation, ensuring public order is complicated for the authorities of the city of Narva, as is the technical side of removing monuments.”

A total of seven monuments from the Soviet era will be removed from Narva’s public spaces.