By David Mardiste
Reuters
Thursday, January 25, 2007; 8:50 AM
TALLINN (Reuters) - Gazing solemnly on a small park in the Estonian capital, a bronze soldier in Soviet Army uniform, head uncovered and rifle slung on his back with barrel pointing to the ground, stands at ease.
But this larger-than-life monument to Russia's Red Army dead is a tense symbol for Estonia -- which spent 50 years under Soviet dominance and is keen to face westward as a member of the European Union -- in relations with its neighbor Russia.
The statue has been the target of protests and Estonia wants to move it to a cemetery. Russia has said that plan is "blasphemous," dishonoring those who fought against Nazi Germany in World War Two.
The dispute illustrates how Estonia and the other three Baltic states -- all EU and NATO members since 2004 -- still exist under a Soviet shadow, their ties with Russia often snarled by the past.
Latvia and Estonia still have no formal border with Russia and Lithuania has been criticized by Moscow for seeking reparations for damage during the 50 years of Soviet rule.
PUBLIC ORDER
World War Two memorials to the Soviet dead are held dear by Russians more than 60 years after the end of the war, which killed more than 10 million Soviet military.
"Of course, I feel sad if they take this (statue) away, no one will see it every day and think about the men who died fighting fascism," said Gennady, a 69-year-old Russian resident of Tallinn, declining to give his last name.
Estonian Prime Minister Andrus Ansip has said a cemetery would be a more suitable site for the monument, arguing it poses a public order problem because it is often the focus for local veterans and Russian-speakers on Russia's May 9 World War Two Victory in Europe celebrations.
On these occasions, the area in front of the lone soldier becomes a sea of red carnations as a mark of respect. Over the years the gatherings have become more boisterous, with the Soviet flag being raised by those nostalgic for the old days.
Estonians have a mixed view of that history: invaded by both Nazi German and Soviet forces in the war, they had men on both sides of the conflict. The Soviet era also saw the deportation of tens of thousands of Estonians to Siberian labor camps.
Some are resentful that such a memorial exists in the center of Tallinn: last year, nationalists protested at the monument and vandals painted the statue with stripes in white and blue, two of the colors of the Estonian tricolor flag.
But feelings about the statue in Estonia cut little ice in Moscow, where the Russian foreign ministry recently summoned Estonia's ambassador to express its anger.
The ministry called the Estonian plan a "blasphemous idea and a blatant mocking of the memories" of Red Army soldiers.
Moscow has often criticized Estonia and Latvia for discriminating against large Russian-speaking minorities, by refusing to grant them automatic citizenship in 1991.
Human rights group Amnesty International also said in a recent report Estonia needs to do more to protect the rights of minorities, adding fuel to Russia's argument.
HIGH WINDS IN THE TREETOPS
Estonian diplomats are calm and see little long-term impact from the spat, though some analysts believe it highlights wider EU-Russia strains.
"Estonian-Russian relations are a bit like a forest," said Estonian Foreign Ministry official Simmu Tiik. "In the top of the trees there are high winds, but at ground level the ants are busy doing many practical positive things."
He noted that even with no formal border treaty between the countries, state limits were clearly marked and functioned effectively.
But Michael Emerson, senior research fellow at the Brussels-based Center for European Policy Studies, said the Russia-Baltic relationship was playing into wider talks between the EU and Moscow for a cooperation pact.
All irritants in ties have to be taken into account, he said, especially as any treaty must be backed by all EU states.
"They (Baltic-Russian differences) have to be taken seriously."
(additional reporting by Patrick Lannin)