All monuments dating back to the Soviet era in Estonia will soon be dismantled or removed, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas announced on Thursday.
“The decision has been made; the Soviet monuments must be removed from public spaces, and we will do that as soon as possible,” Prime Minister Kallas said. “A tank is a lethal weapon and not an object of commemoration. These same tanks are currently being used to kill people in Ukraine,” he added.
The removal dates and orders for the various monuments will be defined at the will and the logistical means of the cities concerned.
According to Kallas, between 200 and 400 Soviet-era monuments remain in Estonia, which was a member of the Soviet Union until 1991.
Several people demonstrated on Wednesday in Narva, a town near the Russian border, against the removal of a tank monument after rumors surfaced that the wartime relic could be taken away.
The leaders of the city, 90% of whose inhabitants are Russian speakers, have announced that they want to negotiate with the government to avoid its withdrawal.
