The relocation of the Bronze Soldier memorial from the city center to a cemetery on the outskirts sparked violent protests from the ex-Soviet Baltic republic's ethnic Russian community. One person was killed and several dozen injured during an outbreak of violence on April 27.
Toomas Hendrik Ilves praised the work of a task force formed 16 days ago with riot police and security forces, saying they had been instrumental in dealing with the first major attempt to destabilize the Estonian state since it gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
However, twenty-one complaints have been lodged by rioters about police using excessive force. According to the Prosecutor General's Office, four criminal cases have been opened on the complaints.
Officials in Moscow reacted angrily to the relocation of the Red Army memorial, which commemorates Soviet soldiers who fought Nazi Germany in WWII, describing the move as blasphemy.
On Thursday, authorities in Russia's northwestern Leningrad region announced a ban on the passage of heavy trucks along the Narva bridge, which links the province with Estonia, citing a need for repairs. But officials in Tallinn said the ban, which covers haulers weighing over 3.5 tons, was intended as a retaliatory measure.
