Estonia: Russian speakers are caught in the middle of a tussle between Russia and the West.

More than 95% of people in Narva, Estonia, speak Russian, and at least 30% have a Russian passport.

Each act of Kremlin’s retaliation becomes a flashpoint for the community.

Estonia is a hamlet of 55,000 people on the Russian border could be on the verge of a new Iron Curtain as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

It is a crossroad where Russia and Russian identity collide with Estonia and the West.

It is apparent that Russians come to Estonia to buy cheese and other Western items that they can’t get in Russia, whereas Estonians go to Russia for inexpensive petrol and building supplies.

The populations of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, as well as the adjacent Baltic countries of Latvia and Lithuania, reflect this mix and the turbulent geopolitics.

Many people here divide Russian speakers into three factions. The three are completely opposed to Russia’s war in Ukraine, while the rest say they want peace but are perplexed by conflicting reports from Western news outlets and Russian propaganda sources. Only a small percentage of the population supports Russia’s invasion.

As Russian attacks in Ukraine continue to take place, under the guise of protecting ethnic Russians in the Donbas regions, and false claims that they are rooting out Nazis, there are fears that Russian speakers in the Baltics will provide another avenue for President Vladimir Putin to expand Russia’s sphere of influence.

Some worry that this group might be used by Moscow, and the propaganda it broadcasts across borders, to become unsuspecting agents in the new Cold War that is forming.

The Russian IT fears the suppression, says, “We realized that we were at great risk and had to leave,” and further adds, “When the war started, we thought that there was a very high probability that all possibilities to go abroad, to come from abroad, and so on, would simply be closed — the Iron Curtain would fall.”

Previously, Russian identity and language were regarded political issues that were employed in elections.

“Unfortunately, since 2014 the discourse within our society shifted to see the Russian-speaking population through the prism of security,” says Dmitri Teperik, the chief executive of the International Centre for Defense and Security.

30 percent of Narva residents have Russian passports, while 95 percent speak Russian.

A survey circulated throughout Narva, asking the question, “Did you have any contact or do you know anyone who has had any contact with the intelligence agencies of Russia or Belarus? Report these instances to the Estonian Internal Security Service.”

Estonia has pressed for further NATO military support and recently imposed new limits on Russians and Belarusians who wish to claim residency in Estonia, making it more difficult for citizens from those countries to travel here without a visa.