THE Estonian Foreign Ministry has strenuously denied accusations made by Russia's security service that Estonians were involved in smuggling arms to Muslim militants in Chechnya and to the IRA.
"Estonia has repeatedly condemned and opposed the use of terrorism anywhere, in any form and for whatever purpose," according to a statement yesterday from the Ministry in Tallinn.
"Therefore, we view with surprise and concern the unfounded, illogical and confused allegations of Estonian involvement, in weapon smuggling made by the Russian Federal Security Service [FSB]".
Russia's popular independent, television channel, NTV, two days ago picked up a report from TASS newsagency, still more or less a mouthpiece of the Kremlin, claiming the Estonian secret service and Kaitseliit, the volunteer National Guard, were sending arms to the Chechens and the IRA.
Estonia's ambassador to Moscow, Mr Mart Helme, called a press conference yesterday because he said the accusation was so serious it could not be allowed to pass without comment.
"If the Estonian special services are involved, then our government is involved [in the arms smuggling]," he said. "If Kaitseliit is involved, then the whole Estonian army is involved. I categorically deny this."
Mr Helme said the Estonian authorities had been in touch with Iveagh House and the British Foreign Office, and both Dublin and London were satisfied.
The ambassador said Kaitseliit, described by Russia as an "extremist organisation", existed in Estonia in the 1930s before the small Baltic country was annexed by Stalin. It was revived in 1992 after Estonia regained its independence, by civilians wishing to be involved in the defence of their country.
The ambassador acknowledged that after its rebirth there had been cases of Kaitseliit members trading in arms "with criminal elements", but two men were being prosecuted in Estonia. Kaitseliit had been incorporated into the Estonian armed forces and was under centralised control.
As an example of Tallinn's efforts, he said, Estonian customs officers, co operating with colleagues from Finland, had two years ago confiscated a consignment of pistols. They originated in the Russian city of Izhevsk, an arms manufacturing centre famous as the home of the Kalashnikov rifle.
Accompanying documents said the pistols were for sport. "But they were for killing. Our country made sure they did not get through," he said, without revealing the intended destination.
The FSB (formerly the KGB) has this week also demanded the expulsion of British diplomats for alleged spying. Commentators area divided as to whether hardliners in Moscow are trying to undermine the President, Mr Boris Yeltsin, in the run up to June's presidential election or whether Mr Yeltsin himself is attempting to toughen his image.