Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
It will be just across from a big screen on the Russian side, broadcasting the Victory Day celebrations.
If you ask anyone in the Kremlin, Vladimir Putin is doing nothing wrong in attacking Ukraine.
If you ask pretty much anyone else, you are likely to get a very different answer.
The Russian leader has again and again argued that Russia was justified in launching an invasion of the neighbouring country, but the International Criminal Court (ICC) disagrees—at least on what Russia is doing in Ukraine.
On March 17, 2023, the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Putin, alleging that he is responsible for war crimes in Ukraine, specifically the unlawful deportation of children from occupied areas in Ukraine to Russia.
The Kremlin has denied any wrongdoing, but now the Russian public will be presented with how most of the rest of the world views the Russian president.
At least the Russian public near the Estonian border.
Visible from Russia
According to the Estonian broadcaster ERR, the Narva Museum will hang a large banner on Narva Castle on the ninth of May, which is the Russian national holiday Victory Day, commemorating the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany.
The banner will depict Putin as a war criminal and face the Russian border, making it visible from Russia.
The institution has maintained this bold tradition since 2023. An earlier iteration even combined the faces of the current Russian president and the Nazi dictator, labeling the result as “Putler,” ERR reported.
Speaking out loudly
Museum director Maria Smorževskihh-Smirnova outlined why the institution takes such a strong public stance.
Smorževskihh-Smirnova told ERR that “The poster will be displayed on the flag tower of Narva Castle on May 9, Europe Day, as a reminder of the war that is currently ongoing and of Russia’s war crimes against the Ukrainian people.”
Being located right on the frontier gives the gesture extra weight, she noted, since the city sits directly across the water from Russia.
Digital shadows
Across the river, a contrasting picture is taking shape. Russian authorities are reportedly setting up large screens to broadcast their own military celebrations.
This physical divide is mirrored in the digital realm. Earlier in 2026, social media posts began pushing the concept of a “Narva People’s Republic” in eastern Estonia, according to the Estonian security police agency KAPO.
The Estonian Internal Security Service identified these campaigns as coordinated disinformation. Officials warned that the chatter copied the playbook Moscow used against Ukraine a decade ago.
Sources: ERR, KAPO, United24Media
