New Estonian coalition likely to be more vigorously anti-Russian

ESTONIA:Estonian prime minister Andrus Ansip is expected to use his new mandate to form a fresh coalition government that will cut taxes and take a tough line with neighbouring Russia.

The ruling alliance took enough votes in Sunday's ballot to become the first government to win re-election since Estonia regained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, but Mr Ansip is likely to ditch his centre-left partner in favour of the right-wing Pro Patria-Res Publica Union.

"There's a very big likelihood that we will form the next government with Pro Patria," Mr Ansip said. "We are very close to them ideologically."

Mr Ansip and Pro Patria leaders also suggested that the new alliance could include a smaller, left-wing party - probably the Social Democrats, who came fourth. Mr Ansip's Reform Party took 28 per cent of votes, ahead of its coalition ally the Centre Party on 26 per cent. Pro Patria-Res Publica took 18 per cent, much more than expected, in what analysts saw as voter appreciation of its tough attitude to Moscow.

Sunday's ballot, which was the world's first general election to allow online voting, was partly overshadowed by a dispute with Moscow about a statue to the Soviet war dead that sits near the centre of the capital, Tallinn.

Mr Ansip and Pro Patria-Res Publica want to move it to a less prominent position, a proposal backed by many Estonians who see it as a reminder of five decades of often brutal occupation after the second World War.

Moscow is furious at the suggestion, however, calling it blasphemy against the Soviet fighters who drove Nazi forces from the Baltic state. The row has also made life even harder for the one-third of Estonia's 1.3 million people who are ethnic Russians.

The diplomatic clash stirred patriotic feeling among Estonians, and Pro Patria-Res Publica harnessed that at the ballot box.

While Reform pledged a cautious reduction of the flat tax rate to help maintain rapid growth, the Centre Party vowed to scrap the flat tax and increase public spending, and courted the ethnic Russian vote by opposing plans to move the Red Army memorial.

Many of Estonia's Russian speakers are ineligible to vote, however, having failed to pass the Estonian language exam that is needed to receive citizenship.

Moscow accuses Estonia of discriminating against its 300,000 Russian speakers, about a third of whom have become Estonian citizens, while another third have taken Russian citizenship. The rest live on aliens' passports with limited rights.