Russia halts Estonia fuel transit amid statue row

By Dmitry Zhdannikov

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia halted deliveries of oil products to Estonia on Wednesday in a move that coincided with protests in Moscow over the Baltic state's relocation of a Soviet war memorial.

The cut-off was likely to revive Western fears the Kremlin is using its energy might as a political weapon against ex-Soviet neighbors.

Russia's state rail monopoly said it planned to carry out maintenance on the rail link to Estonia, disrupting supplies.

Coal exporters said Russian railways had also halted exports of steam coal via Estonia for this month, totaling up to 900,000 tonnes, citing a shortage of railway wagons.

They said Russian rail monopoly RzHD told them they must use their own rail wagons, not RzHD's, but it has not been possible with such short notice to find alternative wagons.

Moscow and Tallinn have been trading barbs since Estonia last week moved a bronze statue of a Red Army soldier -- revered in Russia as a symbol of its huge sacrifices in World War Two -- from its spot in the centre of the capital.

Estonia said the statue was a public order menace and focus for Estonian and Russian nationalists. Many Estonians see the statue as a reminder of 50 years of Soviet rule.

Germany, holder of the European Union's rotating presidency, said it was deeply concerned about the row and by rolling protests by pro-Kremlin youth groups outside Estonia's embassy in Moscow that diplomats there say amounts to a blockade.

The European Commission said it would send a delegation to raise the matter with Moscow. Russia's foreign ministry said Estonia was to blame for the protests.

The protests, in their sixth day, escalated sharply on Wednesday when a group of demonstrators stormed a news conference shortly before Estonia's ambassador arrived. The ambassador's bodyguards sprayed gas to disperse the protesters.

Estonian Prime Minister Andrus Ansip spoke to German Chancellor Angela Merkel about the protests in Moscow, his office said.

"This is a well-coordinated and flagrant intervention with the internal affairs of Estonia," Ansip told parliament.

"We have turned to the European Union and we ask them to take immediate action. Attacking one member state means an attack against the entire European Union," he added.

DARK CLOUD

The dispute is likely to cast a cloud over an EU-Russia summit to be held in Russia on May 18.