Skip to content

Estonia

September 22nd - September 28th, 2025 | Week 108 | Month 25

Estonia Weekly: Narva Museum Director Sentenced in Absentia by Moscow Court

Pro-Kremlin commentators mocked Estonia’s UN appeal as “Russophobic hysteria,” while parts of Russian-speaking social media backed Moscow’s prison sentence against the Narva Museum director.

by Dmitri Teperik and Artur Aukon
Narva
Main channels: Facebook, Telegram, web-pages

7

Main narratives:

  • Russophobia;
  • Rehabilitation of Nazism.

Overview:

Pro-Kremlin commentators on social media dismissed Estonia’s call for an emergency UN Security Council meeting as “Russophobic hysteria,” denying that Russian aircraft violated Estonian airspace and framing Tallinn’s move as political theatre. They claimed no credible evidence had been presented, accused Estonia and its allies of exaggerating routine military flights, and argued the incident was being weaponized to stoke anti-Russian sentiment. Some went further, branding Estonia’s initiative at the Security Council as “pathetic false accusations.” The narrative aimed to deflect responsibility, cast NATO states as provocateurs, and undermine international criticism of Moscow.

Another topic widely discussed in the Russian-speaking segment of social media was the news that a Moscow court sentenced Maria Smorzhevskihh-Smirnova, the director of the Narva Museum, in absentia to ten years in prison for “spreading fake news about the Russian army and rehabilitating Nazism.” The case stems from the fact that in recent years, on May 9, a banner was displayed on the wall of Narva Castle showing bloodstains and the inscription: “Putin is a war criminal,” with half of Putin’s image resembling the silhouette of Adolf Hitler. Smorzhevskihh-Smirnova herself stated that she regards the verdict of the Moscow court as a banal and unoriginal attempt to intimidate everyone who calls things by their proper names. The news spread widely across nearly all Russian-language groups on social media. At the same time, a significant share of comments expressed approval of the sentence against the museum director, openly accusing both Maria Smorzhevskihh-Smirnova and the Estonian authorities of “rehabilitating Nazism.” This once again demonstrates that a part of the Russian-speaking population of Estonia remains within the information sphere shaped by Russian propaganda.

Weekly Reports
Ignotas Adomavičius

Lithuania Weekly: Kremlin Media Amplifies Culture Minister Controversy

September 22nd - September 28th, 2025

pride

Latvia Weekly: Istanbul Convention Withdrawal Debate Revives Old Conspiracies

September 22nd - September 28th, 2025

Seimas

Lithuania Weekly: Kremlin-Aligned Media Exploits Cabinet Formation

September 15th - September 21st, 2025

Military

Latvia Weekly: Kremlin Channels Spin Zapad 2025 as Diplomacy Success

September 15th - September 21st, 2025

Estonia Weekly: Kremlin Denies Airspace Violations

September 15th - September 21st, 2025

Inga Ruginienė

Lithuania Weekly: Kremlin-Aligned Media Exploit Drone Incident and Political Shifts

September 8th - September 14th, 2025

drone

Latvia Weekly: Pro-Kremlin Channels Mock Air Defenses

September 8th - September 14th, 2025

Südalinna Teater

Estonia Weekly: Layoffs at Südalinna Theatre Amplified in Russian Media

September 8th - September 14th, 2025

School

Latvia Weekly: Pro-Kremlin Channels Exploits School Language Transition

September 1st - September 7th, 2025

Military

Estonia Weekly: Kremlin Propaganda Exploits Audit of Estonia’s Defence Ministry

September 1st - September 7th, 2025

Don't miss a story.

We publish stories that change laws, lives, minds and the world. Subscribe to our newsletter to get our investigations delivered to your inbox.