From 6 p.m. candles were lit and placed on Tallinn's Freedom Square and Tartu's Raekoja plats.

"The Day of Remembrance on March 25th reminds us that history must not repeat itself. The lessons of the past must guide us in defending freedom and human dignity everywhere in the world," the Estonian Institute of Human Rights said.

"As Estonians, we know what it means to live under foreign rule, to lose loved ones and one's homeland. That is why it is our moral duty to support those who are fighting for their freedom today. The people of Ukraine need our support—not just words of sympathy, but actions. We must not be indifferent."

Officials also laid floral tributes at the memorial to the victims of communism in Tallinn.

You can find out more information about commemorations across the country here.

In total, over 90,000 people were banished from Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania in March 1949 and sent to Siberia in cattle cars. The majority of deportees were women and children under the age of 16.

A map of deportation sites can be seen in the image below.

The 1949 deportation mirrored an earlier deportation in June 1941, soon after the Soviet Union first occupied Estonia. The number of people exiled was twice as high in 1949 and many Estonians never returned.

Following World War Two, the Soviet Union occupied Estonia for the second time for nearly half a century. This happened despite a peace agreement signed in 1920 between the USSR and Estonia recognizing the smaller country's borders and independence.

The Museum of Occupations in Tallinn has many exhibits and features of the March 25 deportation and other aspects of the Soviet and Nazi occupations of Estonia.

You can find out more about the March deportations here.

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