Russian border guard removes Estonia's navigation buoys from the Narva River

At 3 a.m. on 23 May 2024 the Russian Border Guard unilaterally removed light buoys that Estonia had placed in the Narva River to mark the fairway along the border; the Estonian Foreign Ministry called it 'a provocative border incident' and demanded an explanation and their immediate return. The ministry later gave the number removed as 25. Russia refused a joint riverbed survey to fix the fairway.

Established by. Named: Russia. Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs statements of 23 May 2024 and 30 May 2025; Estonia summoned Russia's chargé d'affaires over the dispute (Oct 2024).

Latest. On 30 May 2025 Estonia ended the 'futile' talks; it did not reinstall the buoys for summer 2025 and stepped up patrols, keeping the temporary control line in place. A further Russian crossing on the Narva River occurred at Vasknarva on 17 Dec 2025 (see separate entry).

Link to the war against Ukraine. The ministry called the refusal to cooperate 'a typical tactic of Russia'; the incident came amid Russia's pressure on NATO's eastern flank during its war on Ukraine.