European Union (EU) has condemned Russia’s removal of buoys demarcating the border with Estonia along the Narva River.
According to Estonian officials, 24 out of 50 buoys installed to delineate sailing routes were removed in the early hours of Thursday.
Tensions over the border have escalated since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has denounced these actions as unacceptable.
“This border incident is part of a broader pattern of provocative behaviour and hybrid actions by Russia, including on its maritime and land borders in the Baltic Sea region,” he said in a statement.
Moscow has raised objections to the positioning of floating markers, which are employed to prevent boats from entering foreign waters, disputing the planned locations of approximately half of the 250 buoys, as reported by Estonia’s border guard service.
Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas stated that she is working to clarify the situation with Russia.
She said it appeared to be part of a “broader pattern” of action by Moscow to use “tools related to the border to create fear and anxiety”.
Estonia’s foreign ministry said it had summoned Russia’s chargé d’affaires and said it was treating the move as a “provocative border incident”.
In a statement, it said it had demanded the “immediate return” of the buoys.
Following the Russian defense ministry’s brief publication of a proposal to alter its maritime border in the Baltic Sea this week, the plan sparked concern among NATO members, notably Estonia.
However, the proposal was swiftly deleted. As of now, Moscow has not issued any comment on the matter.