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Lithuania, Latvia react to Tallinn events
Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus said his country supports the position of the Estonian government in its recent moves related to the controversial Bronze Soldier monument, which was removed from central Tallinn Friday morning during two nights of rioting.Speaking from the Vatican, where he was meeting with Pope Benedict XVI, the president said he was observing the developments in Tallinn with great concern. The president's press service reported that Adamkus stressed that this exceptionally sensitive procedure of reburying the remains of World War II soldiers was being conducted observing international legal standards and paying due respect to the fallen. However some Lithuanian politicians on April 28 had expressed fear that the riots that broke out in Tallinn over the removal of the Bronze Soldier monument would spread to Lithuania as well. "The situation is very bad. What happened is no special provocation. The events are related to a certain interior policy of Russia, political competition. Any method must go to boost popularity. At the time when a peaceful demonstration was taking place in St. Petersburg, ultra-nationalists gathered to a meeting in Moscow. Their leader was making instigations to bomb Estonia down to hell, and the crowd was cheering. That is shocking," the Vakaru Ekspresas daily quotes member of the European Parliament Gintaras Didziokas saying. In his opinion, Russia's response was inadequate and intolerable. "They say they are the only fighters against fascists. That is absolutely wrong. But the Estonians are equally stubborn, failing to start a dialog with Russia over the disassembly of the monument. The Russians can really end diplomatic ties, anything can be expected from them. Russia has too much large-sized equity in Estonia, and the economical relations are much better than, say, with Lithuania," Didziokas said. Russian ultra-nationalists screaming to "bomb Estonia to hell"? More at the link. Posted by: mrp 2007-05-01 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=187284 |