-
Estonia could withstand a Russian attack for two weeks before NATO support arrives, a top commander said.
-
The Baltic states have stepped up their defenses amid fears that Russian aggression could turn against them.
-
Estonia shares a border with Russia. In 2024, defence spending will amount to more than 3% of GDP.
Estonia was able to withstand a Russian attack for two weeks before receiving NATO support, a senior Estonian commander said.
The NATO country, which shares a land border with Russia, “could withstand an invasion for a few weeks,” said Colonel Mati Tikerpuu, the chief of one of Estonia’s two army brigades. told El País.
He said this would “last long enough until Allied reinforcements arrive.”
Estonia, with a population of just 1.4 million, says it will cut its defense spending by 2024 will amount to more than 3% of GDP – far beyond the contributions of most NATO countries – amid deteriorating relations with Russia alarm over large-scale invasion of Ukraine.
As a percentage of GDP Estonia has also given Ukraine more military aid than any other country.
At the same time, American, British and French troops are regularly present at the training base where Tikerpuu came from, some 10 miles from the border with Russia, the Spanish news agency reported — a sign of NATO’s enhanced approach to the region.
In an interview in February, Tikerpuu said told ERREstonia’s national broadcaster said that “nothing can be ruled out” when it comes to preparing for a possible Russian attack.
The war in Ukraine has given Estonia a taste of what it can do, which has helped the country determine priorities for its own armed forces, he told the outlet.
Drones and artillery would be central to any conflict, he said, noting that Russia still prefers massive “meat wave” attacks over the cost of using its high-precision weapons.
Despite increased military spending, Estonia’s fighting power is limited. The army has no battle tanks and the only operational military air base, near Tallinn, has no fighter planes.
In 2022, the Ministry of Defense announced the purchase of six US-made HIMARS multiple rocket launcher systems, which will be delivered this year.
According to a recent Estonian intelligence report, Russia plans to station nearly 40,000 troops near the border in the coming years, El País reported.
That figure dwarfs Estonia’s own military force of 4,200 men – even though the country has just under 40,000 trained reservists, a product of the country’s conscription policy.
Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas told Business Insider last year that she worries that Russia is “the most direct threat to European security right now.”
In March, the US approved a $228 million defense aid package for Estonia and its neighbors Lithuania and Latvia, aimed at accelerating military infrastructure.
In February, the former Soviet states agreed to a new bunker defense line along their shared 1,000-mile border with Russia, with reserve forces ready to deploy additional defenses at short notice, including mines and anti-tank pyramids in the shape of “dragon’s teeth.”
Estonia is also part of a coalition of six countries building a ‘drone wall’ protecting their borders, although few details have emerged about this.
The countries have warned about threatening Russian hybrid attacksattacks that disrupt the battle, but do not lead to open military action.
Read the original article Business insider
