How 9 May unfolded in Estonia

9 May is a day of high emotions and symbolism, infused with propaganda.

In Estonia and across Europe, 9 May is officially marked as Europe Day.

Haunted by the horrors of the Second World War and determined to eliminate aggression between nations, it was on this day in 1950 that the “Schuman declaration” proposed a vision of European unity that would later evolve into today’s European Union. It falls one day after Europe also remembers the defeat of the Nazis as Victory in Europe Day.

However, due to timezone differences when the Nazis surrendered around midnight, 9 May is marked by Moscow as Victory Day. This was developed as a key Soviet commemoration, marked across the Soviet Union and by occupation authorities in the Baltic countries. Under the rule of Vladimir Putin, Victory Day’s symbolism has been further developed as key a propaganda tool for emphasising Russian militarism.

While both Europe Day and Victory Day heavily reference the end of the Second World War, the sentiments differ sharply. Europe Day is used as a celebration of post-war values to eliminate aggression as a tool of statecraft, while Moscow exploits Victory Day to promote its own historical narratives – which crucially emit the first two years of the Second World War in which the Soviet Union was in effective alliance with Nazi Germany – and now to justify ongoing aggression against Ukraine.

In contrast, Ukraine also commemorates Victory Day on 9 May but has vowed to ensure that Russia never appropriates the meaning of it. Proposals have now been made in Ukraine to move Victory Day to 8 May, which is not just an accurate anniversary due to its own timezone, but also reflects Ukraine’s alignment with the rest of Europe in believing the victory over Nazism should be remembered alongside the need to ensure similar aggression is not repeated.

In Estonia, Moscow’s take on Victory Day is particularly sensitive as it is an opportunity for it to divide Estonian society and is widely perceived as a celebration of the continued occupation of Estonia by the Soviet Red Army, which began as a result of the Nazi-Soviet Pact. Estonia was neutral when Poland was invaded by both the Nazis then the Soviets, as a result of the Nazi-Soviet Pact, and was unaware that the Baltic countries had also been consigned to occupation as a next step. 

These contrasting meanings of 9 May were further heightened by Russia’s full scale aggression against Ukraine. However, it also meant that Europe Day grew in importance within Estonia, as across Europe, while Victory Day events in Estonia attracted considerably fewer attendees and – despite the risk of tensions to be exploited – passed off peacefully and almost entirely without incident.

This is a trend that continued in 2023.

9 May 2023

Estonia began celebrating Europe Day in the 1990s, even before joining the European Union, with rooftop concerts at the Foreign Ministry. After Russia launched its full scale war on Ukraine last year, the Foreign Ministry decided to revive the tradition with around 3,000 attending the concert last year.

This year, the concert was moved to Tallinn’s Freedom Square and was the culmination of a wide range of Europe Day activities in the country.

The headline performers were last year’s Eurovision winners from Ukraine, Kalush Orchestra. As Estonian World reported, this was “quite a coup for Estonia” as Kalush Orchestra were originally scheduled to be on the Eurovision semi-final stage that night but chose to be in Estonia for Europe Day in order to give thanks to a country that has been so supportive of Ukraine in the face of Russia’s aggression.

Around 10,000 people attended the concert in Tallinn, making it by far Estonia’s largest Europe Day celebration yet.

Victory Day events also took place and, again, passed almost entirely without incident and with fewer numbers than prior to Russia’s full scale war against Ukraine. Attendees interviewed by ERR gave mixed views about the meaning of the day with some emphasising that marking Victory Day should not be conflated with Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.

In addition, Russian authorities in the town of Ivangorod set up a Victory Day concert facing the Estonian town of Narva so that residents of Estonia could watch from across the border. Pro-Kremlin commentators sought to characterise this as a way to circumvent Estonia’s “ban” on Victory Day.

However, there is no ban on Victory Day events in Estonia. The main way Victory Day is marked in Estonia is by laying flowers at the Bronze Soldier, which in 2007 was moved to Estonian Defence Forces Cemetery where it can be freely visited.

In fact, the role of the Estonian police is to help facilitate Victory Day attendees peacefully with special ‘dialogue police’ who are trained to diplomatically diffuse any risk of tensions out in large numbers to support. What is banned, however, are displays of Russian militarism and any symbols associated with it.

Russian authorities in Ivangorod were unhappy, however, to discover a poster on the walls of Narva Castle facing the concert, which reminded everyone that Putin is a war criminal for his war of aggression against Ukraine. The poster was put up as a collaboration between the Narva museum and Propastop – and quickly attracted media coverage around the world, attracting both wide praise and allegations in Russian media that it was a provocation.

As Maria Smorževskih-Smirnova, director of the Narva Museum, told ERR’s Russian language news portal, the poster is “not a provocation, but an installation planned in advance by the museum and the organisation Propastop, which will hang for several days. It unequivocally reminds us that there is a border here in Narva. The poster is placed on the wall, on which the Estonian flag is flying. This is a place that is located right across from the stage set up by the river in Ivangorod. We have to remember that there is a full-scale war launched by Putin. We thought it necessary to place this installation and remind that everything has a price.”

Russian authorities in Ivangorod quickly arranged a meeting with the Estonian Police and Border Guard, but were told in response that the poster did not break any Estonian laws so would not be removed.

A crowd of a few hundred in Narva gathered to watch the concert across the border, which also included several people who had unfurled Ukrainian flags. There was one incident in which an individual holding a Ukrainian flag was aggressively pushed by a bystander.

Arnold Sinisalu, the chief of the Estonian Internal Security Service (ISS), told ERR that no major incidents had occurred, in thanks part to careful planning by Estonian authorities – and that it was fine for people to enjoy Ivangorod’s concert, many of whom turned up on the Estonian side out of curiosity as it was the most significant event they have staged there.

Jonaton Vseviov, Secretary General of the Estonian Foreign Ministry also pointed to Estonia’s strong societal cohesion, despite attempts by Moscow to cause division. Vseviov was responsible for inviting Kalush Orchestra and says their aim was to send a message that Ukraine is fighting for European values established after the Second World War. As evidence of Estonian societal cohesion, he also pointed out that Estonia is represented at Eurovision this year by Alika Milova, herself a Russian-speaker from Narva who has since learnt Estonian and become an Estonian citizen while becoming a national star and loudly supporting Ukraine.

“9 May is the birthday of the modern European idea,” Vseviov told Estonian World. “But that birthday is about something much bigger. It’s the day when aggression as a tool of statecraft was discredited. We must ensure it remains that way.”

Judging by the response to 9 May in Estonia, that message is resonating with ever greater numbers of people across Estonian society.