Vol. 71/No. 23      June 11, 2007

The controversy reflected deeper tensions in the region as Washington and its imperialist allies expand NATO, the U.S.-led transatlantic military alliance, and tighten the military encirclement of Russia.

When Estonia was a part of the Soviet Union the monument was the republic’s official site for commemorating the Red Army victory over the German military on May 9, 1945. In recent years the anniversary has become a gathering point for Red Army veterans and other Russians.

The Estonian parliament decided in March, with the support of Prime Minister Andrus Ansip, to move the statue. On the night of April 26 unrest broke out around the statue. The police intervened and 40 protesters were wounded and one killed. The next night the monument was removed. This sparked new clashes. Many stores were looted; 70 people were wounded and 600 arrested.

Many of the protesters were from the Russian minority in Estonia, which makes up about 28 percent of the population. Most are not Estonian citizens and don’t have the right to vote. Unemployment among these Russians is higher than average. “When the police pushed us away from the monument Thursday night, 15 years of feelings of discrimination exploded,” Juri Zuravljov, of the pro-Moscow Constitutional Party, told the media.

Moscow reacted sharply at the statue’s removal. The upper house of Russia’s parliament voted to break diplomatic relations with Estonia. Moscow halted rail traffic to Estonia and cancelled the delivery of coal and oil.

Estonia’s embassy in Moscow was besieged by protests from members of Nasji, the youth group of Russian president Vladimir Putin’s party.

Washington, NATO officials in Brussels, and the European Union (EU) commission issued statements supporting Estonia’s government. Instructed by Swedish foreign minister Carl Bildt, Sweden’s ambassador in Moscow visited Estonia’s embassy to show Stockholm’s support. He was involved in an incident with the Russian protesters outside, which in turn prompted a protest from Stockholm.

A week later the statue was reerected at a military grave yard, where the May 9 commemorative ceremonies could be held. Moscow then resumed oil shipments to Estonia.

The conflict contributed to the failure of a summit in Samara, Russia, between EU leaders and Putin. The governments of Lithuania, Poland, and Estonia—all EU members—blocked renewal of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement, an EU-Russian trade accord that had expired.

Behind the conflict lies increasing tensions between imperialist powers, led by Washington, and Moscow. Since the 1997 NATO summit in Madrid, Washington has been building up its military presence in Eastern Europe and former Soviet republics.

Over the last decade, the governments of all three Baltic states—Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania—along with those of Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Slovenia have joined NATO.

Putin harshly criticized this expansion in a February 10 speech in Munich, Germany. The admission of these countries into NATO has nothing to do with “modernization of the alliance” and is a “serious provocation that reduces the level of mutual trust,” the Russian president said. “It turns out that NATO has put its frontline forces on our borders, and we have the right to ask: against whom is this expansion directed?”

Putin also criticized construction by Washington of “forward operating” military bases in Romania and Bulgaria, with similar plans being pursued in Poland and Hungary. He attacked U.S. plans for placing “missile defense” components, such as radars, in Eastern Europe.

On May 24 the Pentagon began formal negotiations with the Polish government to place 10 missile interceptors in the country as part of the U.S. anti-ballistic missile shield. Radar installations used as part of the shield are to be placed in the Czech Republic. In addition, the government of the former Soviet republic of Georgia, where Moscow still maintains military bases, announced it wants to host part of the shield.

A few weeks after the Estonia riots, NATO’s yearly naval exercise took place in the Baltic Sea. This year’s was the largest since the end of the Cold War. The governments of Sweden and Finland, which have announced their intention to join NATO’s Rapid Reaction Force, took part in the maneuvers.

Finland’s new defense minister recently stated that joining NATO was in his country’s interest, which provoked a sharp reaction from Moscow. Gen. Valerij Manilov, adviser to the president of the upper house of the Russian parliament, said Finnish membership in NATO would mean risks for the country. Russian troops would have to be reinforced along the Finnish border, he said. “We would be forced to take all necessary measures to defend the security of the country.”  
 
 
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