NATO’s eastern front, bordering Russia, becomes the scene of incursions by Kremlin soldiers, showing all the vulnerability of the Alliance. The news has broken in the last few hours that three Russian soldiers in uniform have crossed the Estonian border, on the Narva river, near Vasknarva, effectively entering NATO territory.
According to GeolInsider, quoted by the German Bild, the Russian military remained in Estonian territory for about twenty minutes and then returned. A video released by a German media outlet and provided by the Estonian ministry shows Russian soldiers illegally crossing the Line of Control on a breakwater in the Narva River, near the town of Vasknarva. The soldiers had arrived with an overcraft and continued on foot along the border.
“The Estonian Police and Border Guard detected an illegal crossing of a temporary control line between Estonia and Russia on the breakwater of the Narva River by three border guards of the Russian Federation. Estonian Border Guard patrols intervened in the border incident. After a short time, the Russian border guards returned to Russian territory,” reads a note from the Estonian Foreign Ministry.
The “fragile” border between Russia and NATO
According to Tallinn, no prior notification was sent, in violation of a long-standing border agreement between the two countries. The alarm over the episode is contained by Estonia, which reassures that there is no immediate threat to security. Tomorrow Estonia will ask for explanations during a meeting of border representatives and the Estonian Foreign Ministry will summon the Charge d’Affaires of the Russian Embassy in Estonia to ask for clarification on the incident. According to Tallinn’s Interior Minister, Igor Taro, the reason for the trespassing of the Russian soldiers is unclear.
The incursion took place in a sensitive area, which determines the delicate relationship between Moscow and Tallinn. Due to the geography of the area, Russian vessels transiting the Narva River to Lake Peipus must briefly pass through Estonian-controlled waters. Usually, the Russian authorities notify the Estonian guards in advance, and the passage is regularly authorized.
The border between Estonia and Russia along the Narva River and Lake Peipus follows a Line of Control inherited from the Soviet administrative border. After Estonian independence and the dissolution of the Soviet Union, this line became the de facto border, although a definitive treaty was never ratified. The legal situation is further complicated by the blocking of a 2014 agreement, which remained suspended due to political disputes between the two countries over legal and historical interpretations.
Four days ago the Estonian Foreign Minister announced what would happen if the Russians crossed the border in an interview with Frankfurter Rundschau. Margus Tsahknahad said: “I can answer clearly that we will shoot them down.” But this time, no shots were fired at the Russian soldiers.
