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Newsletter for the Baltics Week 2 2018

The following information is gathered from usually reliable and open sources, mainly from the Baltic News Service (BNS), respective defence ministries press releases and websites as well as various newspapers, etc.

Table of contents THE BALTICS ...... 4 Strong support for common EU defence and security policy in ...... 4 THE BALTICS AND ...... 4 Scrambles of NATO over Russian military aircraft near Baltics up in 2017 ...... 4 THE BALTICS AND EXERCISE ...... 4 Utria recon challenge kicks off ...... 4 LITHUANIA ...... 5 US bombers train in Lithuania ...... 5 Approximately 300 French troops join NATO battalion in Lithuania ...... 5 Lithuania hosts traditional Snow Meeting ...... 5 Defence Ministry publish recruitment lists for 2018 ...... 5 Danish Detachment take over the NATO Baltic Air Policing Mission ...... 6 Lithuania to continue providing financial support to Afghan forces ...... 7 Minister of Defence of Croatia visits Lithuania ...... 7 Explosive neutralised at Lithuania’s border with Belarus ...... 7 First two Boxers arrive in Lithuania ...... 7 Lithuanian soldiers continue standby in multinational rapid response forces in 2018 ...... 7 Russian FSB officer withdraws appeal against 10-year prison sentence in Lithuania ...... 8 Court rules Defence Minister had no grounds to suspend Navickas as Air Force Commander . 8 Lithuania’s 2018 defence projects will be short of 30 million euro ...... 9 LATVIA ...... 9 Latvia to purchase assault rifles and other weapons for 13 million euro ...... 9 Border Guard to be given right to register data on all people crossing country’s border ...... 10 Abandoned Soviet-era military town in Skrunda handed over to Latvian Defence Ministry ... 10 Russian warships spotted near Latvian waters ...... 10 State Border Guard to purchase two new ...... 11 Defence Ministry plans cooperation with hunters to enhance Latvia’s defence capabilities ... 11 Latvia approves eighth observer for Ukraine mission ...... 11 National defence classes at Latvian schools to cost 17 million euro a year ...... 11 ESTONIA ...... 12 Estonian Defence Minister proposes Brig Gen Martin Herem as next Defence Chief ...... 12 Unit of Danish arrives in Estonia ...... 12 Stratcom budget increases to 800,000 euro ...... 13

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Parliament committee endorse motion increasing Estonia’s input to mission in Afghanistan 13 take over Baltic Air Policing ...... 13 Prime Minister fends off claims about cuts to defence investments in parliament ...... 13 Estonia buys drones for 400,000 euro to guard eastern border ...... 14 Estonian government approves implementation of national defence development plan ...... 14 not able to contact 123 reservists for snap exercise ...... 14 US to invest nearly $14 million in Ämari Air Base ...... 14 Estonian Defence Forces to acquire new ballistic vests ...... 15 Estonian PM says allied battalion strengthened security of Baltics ...... 15 Belgian Minister of Defence and Defence Chief visit Amari Air Base ...... 15 Estonian Minister of Defence: NATO summit should focus on reinforcements ...... 15 Estonia wishes to go on training Ukrainian humanitarian EOD operators ...... 16 Estonian-speaking residents say presence of NATO battle group makes country safer ...... 16

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THE BALTICS

Strong support for common EU defence and security policy in Baltic States On 3 January, a Eurobarometer survey conducted in November was published. It shows that 84 percent of Latvian residents, 82 percent of Estonian residents and 87 percent of Lithuanian residents support a common EU defence and security policy. The EU average is 75 percent. Furthermore, 66 percent of Latvian residents, 63 percent of Estonian residents and 79 percent of Lithuanian residents support a common EU foreign policy. The EU average is 66 percent.

THE BALTICS AND RUSSIA

Scrambles of NATO military aircraft over Russian military aircraft near Baltics up in 2017 Last year, NATO air-policing military aircraft intercepted more Russian military aircraft flying close to the borders of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, as compared to 2016. According to data by the Lithuanian Defence Ministry, NATO military aircraft were scrambled approx. 130 times over Russian military aircraft in 2017, as compared to approx. 110 times in 2016, approx. 160 times in 2015 and approx. 140 times in 2014. The number of Russian military aircraft flying above the Baltic Sea increased significantly after the 2014 escalation of the ties between Moscow and the Western world in the wake of the Russian annexation of Crimea. Later that year, additional military aircraft were added to the Baltic air-policing mission. In 2013, NATO military aircraft were scrambled over Russian military aircraft 47 times, up from 44 times in 2012, 37 times in 2011 and four times in 2010.

THE BALTICS AND EXERCISE

Utria recon challenge kicks off On 11 January, the Defence Forces of Estonia and Latvia, as well as from Finland, Poland and the U.K. started the Utria Assault reconnaissance challenge at Ahtme in north-eastern Estonia. The main emphasis of Ultria Assault exercise has been on soldier skills and physical shape, but in this year’s edition, several challenges require good intellectual skills and knowledge. The length of the course is approximately 60 kilometres and the number of checkpoints this year is bigger than in previous years. The competition will end with a final run on the morning of 13 January and the winners will be awarded at a ceremony.

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LITHUANIA

US bombers train in Lithuania A joint exercise of the Lithuanian and Air Forces is scheduled to take place in Kazlu Ruda later this week, involving US bombers, the US Embassy in Vilnius said on 11 January. The US military aircraft will be delegated by the 5th Bomb Wing at Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota. The embassy did not specify the number and models of the aircraft to take part in the exercise. According to the press release, the exercise is intended “to improve interoperability between US and Lithuanian forces.”

Approximately 300 French troops join NATO battalion in Lithuania On 11 January, approx. 300 French troops have been deployed to Lithuania as part of NATO’s multinational battalion. The first group arrived in Lithuania in late December and the last one came on 10 January, Major Mouasso Milla Arnaud of the French contingent said. The Major stated that four Leclerc tanks and nine VBCI infantry fighting vehicles, as well as other equipment, has also been deployed to Lithuania.

Lithuania hosts traditional Snow Meeting On 11 January, security policy experts gathered in Lithuania for the annual Snow Meeting to discuss key challenges faced by the transatlantic community and responses to these challenges. Participants of the two-day meeting included the foreign ministers of the three Baltic States and the Vatican, and the Swedish and Estonian defence ministers. The 11th Snow Meeting brought together a total of over 100 high-ranking diplomats, advisers, parliamentarians and international and security policy exports from around 15 countries and NATO and EU institutions. Discussions focused on how to further strengthen transatlantic links and address security challenges currently faced by the Euro-Atlantic community. Participants also discussed preparations for the NATO Summit, which is to be held in Brussels next July and its possible decisions. A separate session was held to discuss closer EU defence cooperation initiatives.

Defence Ministry publish recruitment lists for 2018 On 10 January, Lithuania’s Defence Ministry published on their webpage the recruitment list for the country’s Armed Forces. The 2018 recruitment lists includes nearly 28,000 young men between ages of 19 and 26. The lists may include the young men who filed applications to join the volunteer service. The so-called volunteer recruits have the opportunity of choosing the location of service and will receive a higher pay. This year, nearly 3,900 recruits will be enrolled

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in various units of Lithuania’s Armed Forces this year for nine-month service, which is an increase by 300 from 2017.

Danish Air Force Detachment take over the NATO Baltic Air Policing Mission On 5 January, a Danish Air Force Detachment landed with four F- 16 Fighting Falcon military aircraft in Šiauliai Air Base of the to carry out next rotation of the NATO Air Policing Mission in the Baltic States. Denmark’s F-16 aircraft will replace the United States’ F- 15 military aircraft that have guarded Baltic airspace from the Siauliai military airbase since September. The Danish rotation is formed by personnel and equipment of the Fighter Wing Skrydstrup of the Danish Air Force. It is the sixth time Denmark is manning the mission, the previous rotations were deployed in 2004, 2009, 2011, 2013 to Šiauliai, and in 2014 to Amari Air Base, Estonia. The outgoing U.S. Air Force Detachment with four F-15 Eagle military aircraft was the fifth rotation deployed to carry out the Mission by the United States of America. A formal changeover ceremony was held at the Lithuanian Air Force in Šiauliai on January 8 to transfer the lead of the NATO Air Policing Mission in the Baltic States, from the U.S. Air Force Detachment to the incoming Detachment with four F-16 Fighting Falcon military aircraft. The ceremony on was attended by Vice Minister of National Defence Vytautas Umbrasas, Commander of NATO’s Combined Air Operations Centre (CAOC) Major General Thierry Dupont, Commander of the Lithuanian Air Force Dainius Guzas, Mayor of Šiauliai City Artūras Vicockas, U.S. and Danish delegations, representatives of embassies and other guests. “The NATO Air Policing Mission in the Baltic States, along with the NATO enhanced Forward Presence Battalion Battle Groups, is a vital factor of deterrence and defence measures in the entire region,” Vice Minister of National Defence Vytautas Umbrasas said welcoming the Danish Air Contingent at the changeover ceremony. At the ceremony Vice Minister V.Umbrasas also thanked the outgoing U.S. Air Force contingent for the fifth U.S. rotation in the NATO Baltic Air Policing Mission.

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Lithuania to continue providing financial support to Afghan forces Lithuania, which takes part in NATO’s advisory mission in Afghanistan, will in the next three years continue to provide funds to Afghan forces fighting the Taliban. On 3 January, the Lithuanian government gave the green light for allocating approx. 415,000 euro in 2018-2020 annually for the maintenance and development of the Afghan national security forces. The money will be transferred to a special trust fund, which gets its most contributions from the US. The annual amount of funds is unchanged from what Lithuania contributed to the fund previously.

Minister of Defence of Croatia visits Lithuania On 28-29 December, the Minister of Defence Raimundas Karoblis met with Croatian Minister of Defence and Vice Prime Minister of Croatia Damir Krstičević and Chief of Defence of Croatia General Mirko Šundo in Lithuania. During the visit, the security situation in the Baltic region and bilateral co-operation were discussed. After the meeting in Vilnius, the Ministers went to to deliver holiday greetings to the rotation of Croatian soldiers deployed in Lithuania as part of the NATO enhanced Forward Presence Battalion Battle Group.

Explosive neutralised at Lithuania’s border with Belarus On 15 December, Lithuanian border guards discovered an item resembling an explosive at the border with Belarus. According to the press release, the border guards called the police and mine neutralization units, which identified the finding as an 85 mm wartime shell. The explosive was destroyed on the spot.

First two Boxers arrive in Lithuania On 15 December, the first two German Boxer infantry fighting vehicles purchased by Lithuania’s Armed Forces were delivered to Lithuania. The two vehicles are intended for training and do not feature the turret, unlike the majority of the 88 vehicles purchased last year. The vehicles will be used to equip two of the Lithuanian army’s battalions in Rukla and Alytus. Signed in August of 2016, the contract on acquisition of 88 Boxers from Germany is estimated at 386 million euro. The next batch of Boxers should reach Lithuania in 2019, with all of the vehicles to be delivered by 2021.

Lithuanian soldiers continue standby in multinational rapid response forces in 2018 In 2018, over 420 Lithuanian soldiers with vehicles and weaponry will continue the standby in multinational rapid response forces –NATO Response Force (NRF), NATO Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF) and the generated UK-led Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF). The soldiers will be stationed in their homebases and maintain high readiness to deploy as part of the

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multinational force to the area of operation within a set time in case such a decision is made. Soldiers of the Lithuanian Land Force, Special Operations Forces, Logistics Command and the Military Police will be on standby for different elements of the VJTF. In the second semester of 2018 a mine countermeasures ship of the Lithuanian Navy will be assigned to the VJTF. Soldiers of the Lithuanian Special Operations Forces, Land Force, J.Vitkus Engineer Battalion, Tactical Refuelling Unit and the Water Purification Unit of the Logistics Command will be on standby in 2018 for NRF. Headquarters and supply ship of the Lithuanian-Latvian Naval Squadron LNS Jotvingis will be on standby for NRF in the second semester of 2018. Lithuanian soldiers will also be assigned to the UK-led JEF. The Lithuanian Grand Duke Algirdas Mechanised Infantry Battalion’s Infantry Company will be on standby for the JEF as part of the Danish Battle Group, also, military medics, and a National Support Element are assigned to ensure logistical support.

Russian FSB officer withdraws appeal against 10-year prison sentence in Lithuania Nikolai Philipchenko, an officer of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB), has withdrawn his appeal against a Lithuanian court’s decision to sentence him to ten years in prison for spying. “Mr. Philipchenko has been convicted, the sentence has come into force and he has been taken to a prison in Lithuania to serve his term,” Justas Laucius, the state prosecutor in the case stated. According to Galina Kardanovskaja, the officer’s defence lawyer, the Russian national in July appealed his conviction by the Vilnius Regional Court but later withdrew the appeal. “It was his decision that there was no point in litigating, seeking justice and he withdrew his appeal,” she said. The Vilnius Regional Court on July 7 found the Russian national guilty of spying. The court then said that the 40-year-old man, in detention since 2015, was a FSB officer. Lithuanian law-enforcement bodies said earlier that Philipchenko had sought to recruit officers from Lithuania’s VIP Protection Department to bug President Dalia Grybauskaite at her home and office.

Court rules Defence Minister had no grounds to suspend Navickas as Air Force Commander The Lithuanian Defence Minister had no grounds to suspend Colonel Audronis Navickas, a former Lithuanian Air Force Commander, from his duties during an investigation into plans to send military helicopters to Russia for repairs, the Vilnius Regional Administrative Court ruled on 22 December. The court annulled the Defence Minister’s decision from 22 November 2016 on the colonel’s suspension from his duties as Air Force commander. “There were no legal and factual grounds for the appellant’s suspension,” Judge Marius Bajoras stated “The court made this conclusion because at the time the contested order was issued, the applicant was neither suspected of committing a disciplinary offense nor named a suspect or an accused in

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a criminal case,” he said. The Defence Ministry has said that Navickas failed to enforce the Defence Resource Council’s decision, made in February 2016, not to repair military helicopters in Russia. Earlier in 2017, Navickas was reinstated in his post only to be dismissed shortly afterwards by Lithuanian Defence Minister Raimundas Karoblis. The Defence Ministry said that the decision to dismiss the Air Force Commander was based on military intelligence information that he had “belittled” the Defence Minister and the Chief of Defence and sought to discredit the national defence system. The process of sending Mi-8 helicopters to Russia for an overhaul was cleared by several high-ranking defence officials before it was stopped at the last stage in 2016. The Foreign Ministry says that repairs in Russia would have run counter to the ’s decisions on sanctions against Moscow and to Lithuania’s foreign policy. Dainius Guzas replaced Navickas as the Lithuanian Air Force Commander. Lithuania’s Defence Ministry plans to consider the possibility of filing an appeal against the court ruling.

Lithuania’s 2018 defence projects will be short of 30 million euro Implementation of the defence projects planned for 2018 will be short of about 30 million euro, Lithuania’s Defence Minister Raimundas Karoblis said on 14 December after meeting with top commanders of the country’s Armed Forces and its units. His statement came in spite of Lithuania’s plans to earmark 2 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) for defence purposes next year. In his words, the security situation does not allow stretching the project implementation in time. The minister called for common efforts to efficiently use the defence budget. Lithuania’s 2018 defence budget will total around 873 million euro. The Defence Ministry will spend the most on military equipment acquisitions and expansion of the Zemaitija brigade in western Lithuania.

LATVIA

Latvia to purchase assault rifles and other weapons for 13 million euro On 11 January, it was announced that the Latvian National Armed Forces have signed an agreement for purchase of 13 million euro worth of assault rifles and other weapons for the professional army, the Home Guard and the National Border Guard. The National Armed Forces and German defence manufacturing company Heckler & Koch GmbH have signed a framework agreement and purchase contract for delivery of Heckler’s G-36 assault rifles. Under the seven- year contract, G-36 assault rifles and other weapons will be purchased for the army and the National Border Guard with first deliveries to be made this year. For reasons of operations

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security, the Defence Ministry would not specify the types of other weapons to be supplied under the contract. “Purchase of G-36 assault rifles and other guns under the agreement will allow us to modernise the National Armed Forces, Home Guard and Border Guard arsenal with the same type of weapons. It will further enhance the close cooperation and joint development to which we have committed ourselves and are working towards,” said Latvian Defence Minister Raimonds Bergmanis.

Border Guard to be given right to register data on all people crossing country’s border On 4 January, the Interior Affairs Ministry informed that the Latvian government plans to provide the State Border Guard with the right to register and save information about all persons crossing Latvia’s border. This information includes information from their travel documents and driven vehicles. Amendments will come into force after their approval in the Parliament. Information regarding all people crossing Latvia’s border will help identify person that could potentially create risks for the country’s security, public order and health, the ministry reports. In addition, this information will be used by the State Border Guard and other law enforcement institutions for risk assessments and preventive measures.

Abandoned Soviet-era military town in Skrunda handed over to Latvian Defence Ministry On 4 January, the Latvian government approved the handover of the abandoned Soviet-era military town in Skrunda region in western Latvia to the Defence Ministry so that the facility could be officially transformed into a military training base of the National Armed Forces. The Latvian army and the allied troops deployed to Latvia have been using the abandoned town for urban warfare training for more than a year but now the property has been officially transferred to the Defence Ministry. The property consists of some 25 hectares of land and about 25 buildings. The local government of Skrunda has agreed to hand the property over to the Defence Ministry free of charge.

Russian warships spotted near Latvian waters On 28 December, a corvette of the Russian naval forces was spotted near Latvian waters. The Russian corvette Kabardino-Balkaria was detected in Latvia’s exclusive economic zone 3.5 nautical miles from Latvia’s territorial waters. On 30 December, the National Armed Forces furthermore detected a Russian military frigate near Latvia’s territorial waters. According to

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the National Armed Forces, a Steregushchy class frigate of the Russian Armed Forces was detected three nautical miles from the territorial waters.

State Border Guard to purchase two new helicopters On 27 December, it was announced that the State Border Guard has signed a purchase agreement with the Italian company Leonardo - Societa per Azioni on the purchase of two helicopters. “Leonardo has announced that the State Border Guard of Latvia has signed a contract for two AW119Kx single engine helicopters, plus option for an additional unit, customised configuration, and aircrew/maintenance technician training services,” the company informed. The Italian company will supply two AW 119 Kx single-engine light-class helicopters to the State Border Guard in 2019. The Interior Ministry has allocated 11.2 million euro for the purchase, maintenance and training of the new helicopters.

Defence Ministry plans cooperation with hunters to enhance Latvia’s defence capabilities On 20 December, Defence Minister Raimonds Bergmanis and Janis Baumanis, chairman of the Latvian Hunters Association, signed a cooperation agreement with the aim to involve hunters in enhancing Latvia’s defence capabilities. The Defence Ministry and the Hunters Association will cooperate to involve hunter volunteers in boosting Latvia’s defence, organising seminars for hunters on opportunities to participate in defence activities and on the national defence concept. The ministry and the association are also planning to educate the public on various defence-related matters, provide recommendations on how to act in emergencies and on safe handling of weapons.

Latvia approves eighth observer for Ukraine mission On 19 December, the Latvian Cabinet of Ministers approved the secondment of a Latvian civilian expert, Sandis Kalējs, as a monitor to the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine. Kalējs will raise the number of Latvian civilian experts in the OSCE mission to Ukraine to eight.

National defence classes at Latvian schools to cost 17 million euro a year On 19 December, the Defence Ministry informed that according to its estimates it will cost approx. 15-17 million euro a year to introduce national defence classes at schools in Latvia. In late September, the committee on defence, interior affairs and corruption prevention upheld the proposal to make the national defence classes mandatory in high schools and vocational schools, but the decision still needs to be approved by the Cabinet of Ministers. The Defence

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Ministry has estimated that additional 300 instructors will have to be trained and hired for working with the youngsters. The national defence classes would include patriotic education, physical and basic military training. It is planned that upon graduation of high school, young people would be offered to sign on as reserve soldiers. The national defence classes will first be introduced at several schools as a pilot project in 2018 and, depending on the results of the pilot project, more schools might join the project in 2019.

ESTONIA

Estonian Defence Minister proposes Brig Gen Martin Herem as next Defence Chief On 10 January, Estonian Defence Minister Juri Luik proposed Martin Herem as the next Commander of the Estonian Defence Forces starting from 5 December 2018. Herem has already accepted Luik’s proposal. The Commander of the Defence Forces is appointed by the government at the proposal of the Defence Minister and considering the position of the Parliamentary National Defence Committee.

Unit of Forces arrives in Estonia On 10 January, a company of the Danish Defence Forces landed in Estonia at Ämari Air Base, as part of the eFP. The Danish personnel was welcomed at Ämari by Estonian President Kersti Kaljulaid, Defence Minister Jüri Luik and Danish Ambassador Kristina Miskowiak Beckvard. The combat hardware of the Danish contingent, including CV90 infantry fighting vehicles, arrived at the port of Paldiski one day later. The Danish company will take over from the French contingent of 300 soldiers who, in turn, will start serving in Lithuania as part of the NATO battle group. The leading country of the battle group is the United Kingdom. Lt. Col. Steen Wegener, head of the company of Danish Defence Forces, considers the possibility of a military conflict breaking out between Estonia and Russia to be extremely slim.

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Stratcom budget increases to 800,000 euro On 10 January, it was made public that the amount of money set aside for strategic communication in the budget of Estonia’s Government Office this year is 800,000 euro. In 2016, 60,000 euro were earmarked for the same purpose. In addition to the two strategic communication experts working at the government seat of Stenbock House, eight more people will be hired, each of whom will perform specific tasks. Estonia must develop the capability to monitor messages, issue messages in response and be able to solve crises more effectively. Altogether 3.26 million euro will be spent for that purpose until 2021. The budget is to remain on that level at least for the next four years.

Parliament committee endorse motion increasing Estonia’s input to mission in Afghanistan On 9 January, the National Defence Committee of the Estonian Parliament unanimously endorsed a draft resolution enabling to deploy a platoon-sized unit of up to 40 defence personnel to Afghanistan. The draft motion is now in the hands of the chamber for the first reading, which has been scheduled for 17 January and the second reading has been scheduled for 7 February. If the motion passes the two readings, the Estonian Defence Forces will send up to 40 soldiers to Afghanistan in addition to the present Estonian input of up to six military personnel.

Italian Air Force take over Baltic Air Policing On 9 January, the air component of the Belgian Defence Forces officially left the Ämari Air Base in Estonia and the Baltic Air Policing mission was handed over to the Italian Air Force for the next four months. is to guard the Baltic airspace with four military aircraft. The home base of the Italian contingent is in southern Italy. In addition to guarding the Baltic airspace out of Ämari, the Italian flight will carry out trainings for its members as well as with other allies in the region. The Italian Air Force has previously participated twice in the Baltic Air Policing mission, but out of the Siauliai Air Base in Lithuania.

Prime Minister fends off claims about cuts to defence investments in parliament On 8 January, the Estonian Prime Minister Jüri Ratas underlined that the current government coalition has not cut back on Estonia’s defence investments or capabilities. On the contrary, it was noted that Estonia, in terms of this year’s defence budget, has the largest budget ever seen in Estonia, which is 524 million euro, thus exceeding the half a billion mark. Furthermore, it was ensured that the current Estonian government’s aim is to fully strengthen Estonia’s defence capabilities and improve its sustainability.

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Estonia buys drones for 400,000 euro to guard eastern border On 5 January, the Estonian Police and Border Guard purchased drones for nearly 400,000 euro to protect the eastern border with Russia. Nine ELIX XL-type drones were bought. The price of one drone is 42,000 euro exclusive of VAT and was co-funded by the EU’s Internal Security Fund and the Ministry of the Interior. The drones are to be introduced on 12 January at the Mustvee guard station.

Estonian government approves implementation of national defence development plan On 28 December, the Estonian government approved the implementation plan of the national defence development plan 2017-2026 for the year of 2018-2021. The areas of activity of national defence include the continuity of state and society, international activity, strategic communication, internal security and military defence. The areas mentioned were also the basis for drawing up the implementation plan. By realising the implementation plan, Estonia’s independent defence capability and the resistance of government institutions for crises will increase. In addition, the rapid reaction capabilities of internal security units, the state’s strategic situational awareness, the security of Estonia’s foreign representations and the state’s strategic communication will be developed, as part of the plan.

Estonian Defence Forces not able to contact 123 reservists for snap exercise On 20 December, it was announced that the Estonian Defence Forces was not able to get a hold of 123 reservists called up for the recent Okas (Quill) short-notice exercise in defence readiness. According to the Defence Forces’ headquarters, 523 reservists were called up for the exercise, of whom 39 were sent back home. Therefore, 490 reservists took part in the exercise. Of the reservists who did not attend the exercise, 74 said they are out of country, while the defense forces was unable to contact 123 reservists called up for the exercise, which means that in all 197 reservists did not take part in the exercise.

US to invest nearly $14 million in Ämari Air Base On 18 December, it was announced that the US is planning to invest a total of $214 million in European air bases, of which $13.9 million has been earmarked for Estonia’s Ämari Air Base. The money was included in the US’ National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018, which President Donald Trump signed into law on 12 December. The funds are part of the European Deterrence Initiative (EDI), initiated in June 2014, three months after Crimea was

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occupied by Russian forces. This far, the U.S. has invested over $32 million in Ämari Air Base in the framework of the EDI.

Estonian Defence Forces to acquire new ballistic vests On 18 December, it was announced that the Estonian Defence Forces are going to buy new bulletproof and splinterproof vests over the next few years for an estimated 24 million euro. The ballistic vests will also mask the infrared signature created by a soldier and are more practical compared with a combat harness set and they are the most expensive element of personal equipment so far. Furthermore, in the beginning of 2018, the Defence Forces will also start a gradual transition to smaller-caliber service rifles as well as fleece jackets and field uniforms. Estonia’s defence investments are planned to total 769 million euro in 2018-2021, to which 60 million euro will be added from the defence investment program for the purchase of ammunition, along with an expected grant of 33 million euro from the US government.

Estonian PM says allied battalion strengthened security of Baltics On 18 December, at a joint press conference that followed a meeting between the three Baltic prime ministers, the Estonian Prime Minister, Jüri Ratas, said that all three Baltic countries believe that NATO’s Enhanced Forward Presence (eFP), which brought 20 allies to the Baltic States and Poland this year strengthening the security of the region, has been a success. In addition to defence, the prime ministers also discussed cooperation in energy infrastructure projects and the development of transport connections, such as the creation of a regional Baltic-Finnish gas market and Rail Baltic.

Belgian Minister of Defence and Defence Chief visit Amari Air Base The Belgian Minister of Defence, Steven Vandeput together with the Head of the Belgian Defence Forces, Marc Compernol paid a visit to the Belgian Air Force serving at the Amari Air Base on 18 December in the framework of the NATO Baltic Air Policing Mission. During the visit, the Estonian Defence Minister, Jüri Luik, met with the Belgian delegation at Amari Air Base where he thanked his Belgian colleague and the Head of the Belgian Defence Forces for their contribution.

Estonian Minister of Defence: NATO summit should focus on reinforcements On 15 December, during an event at the International Centre for Defence and security, Estonian Defence Minister, Jüri Luik, said that the main purpose of the NATO Summit next year

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should be to focus on how to bring in reinforcements in case of a potential crisis. It is therefore important, during the upcoming summit, to focus on what the alliance’s strategy is when it comes to reinforcements and support.

Estonia wishes to go on training Ukrainian humanitarian EOD operators It was made public on 16 December that both Estonia and Ukraine are interested in continuing cooperation in the field of training of humanitarian explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) specialists. Officials stated this after the conclusion of a course during which training consistent with international standards was provided to 17 humanitarian EOD specialists from Ukraine. Under the cooperation project, which lasted one and a half years, Estonia supported the creation of a system of training humanitarian EOD specialists corresponding to international standards in Ukraine and the provision of training to the first cadets and instructors.

Estonian-speaking residents say presence of NATO battle group makes country safer A survey published on 15 December, commissioned by the Estonian Ministry of Defence, showed that 78 percent of the Estonian-speaking population said that the battle group makes Estonia safer, while 7 percent said that it makes the country less safe and 11 percent said that it has no effect on Estonia’s security. Of the non-Estonian-speaking respondents, 21 percent said that the NATO battle group makes Estonia more secure, while 20 percent said that it has a negative effect on security and 43 percent said it has no effect on the country’s security. Regarding the general support for the Estonian NATO membership, the study found that 92 percent of Estonian-speaking residents support Estonia being a member of NATO, while only 33 percent of non-Estonian-speaking residents support it, 48 percent oppose it and a 20 percent do not have a position regarding the issue.

Newsletter was prepared by Anders Faarup Nielsen (intern, Tallinn), Jakob Greve Kromann (intern, Riga), Jacob Dalsgaard Pedersen and Leah Elizabeth Winther Hamborg (interns, Vilnius)

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