Today, May 15, an urban battle exercise took place in Pärnu, where reservists and members of the Estonian Defence League participating in Spring Storm practiced defending the harbour area together with the allies.
The Spring Storm exercise integrates various hybrid threats to create challenges as close to real-life scenarios as possible and to learn to address them in cooperation with allies. “The goal of today’s exercise from our perspective was to create a learning environment, where the opposing force had initiated a hybrid operation, during which a group of demonstrators supporting the enemy gathered at the harbour,” said Captain Andres Järve, a member of the Estonian Defence League. “The members of the Defence League and the Danes acted professionally and accomplished their task. We also identified lessons learned that the participants can use in upcoming training exercises.”
According to the Spring Storm exercise scenario, a an organized demonstration in the favour of the opponents took place near Ülejõe in Pärnu early on the morning of May 15, followed by an enemy amphibious assault. The task of the members of the Estonian Defence League that were training in the same area was to timely detect potential threats and respond to them. As a follow-up exercise, an urban battle drill was conducted in a factory building in the area, focusing on defending an object and clearing the building of the opponent’s units. Allies from the NATO Battlegroup participating in the Spring Storm joined the exercise, strengthening the Estonian Defence League’s Western Territorial Defence Region’s units.
“In the training battle, our focus was on an urban area and defending an object, which included patrol raids across the entire Area of Responsibility in cooperation with the Danes, to whom we provided support in aerial observation and a quick response Task Force, depending on the situation,” said Sergeant Pirko Palu, squad leader of the Estonian Defence League’s Pärnu City Defence Platoon. “For defending the object, we positioned our units based on previously gathered information, and the main objective was successfully achieved.”
The exercise also involved reservist units from the Estonian Defence League’s Territorial Defence Region North, tasked during Spring Storm with defending various objects in Pärnumaa, conducting force protection, patrolling, and setting up control checkpoints. During Spring Storm, members of the Estonian Defence Forces and the Estonian Defence League practice defending Estonia together with the allies, right in the areas where the residents that are ought to be protect live.
“Our task in today’s training battle was to defend the Pärnu Harbour alongside the Estonian Defence League, and we managed well in cooperation,” said Sergeant Trier of the Royal Danish Air Force. “It is very important for us to gain different experiences on various terrains, and Estonia offers a great opportunity for this. Besides the exercise, we have had positive interactions with member sof the Estonian Defence League, and the local residents have offered us food and other support.”
The Estonian Defence League is a vital part of Estonia’s national defence system and a crucial component in ensuring national security during peacetime, as well as during crises and conflicts. Members of the Territorial Defence Units are obligated to support internal security and national governance, gather information about the activities of adversaries, and assist in the formation of the reservists of the defence forces.
The Spring Storm exercise involves units from the army, air force and navy, including the Division Headquarters, the 1st and 2nd Infantry Brigades, the Support Command, the Cyber Command, and other units of the Estonian Defence Forces and the Estonian Defence League. Participants include NATO Battlegroup’s members serving in Estonia as well as military personnel from allied and partner countries. In total, approximately 14,000 soldiers are participating in the exercise.
Spring Storm is the largest annual exercise of the Estonian Defence Forces, during which military operations planning and execution are practiced, as well as enhanced cooperation between Estonian and allied units. The exercise involves active-duty military personnel, conscripts, reservists, members of the Estonian Defence League, and participants from allied nations. In total, nearly 14,000 troops take part of the exercise.
Spring Storm 2024 is part of the NATO exercise series Steadfast Defender 2024, representing a significant component of this extensive NATO exercise. Steadfast Defender 2024 is the largest NATO exercise in decades, with nearly 90,000 participants from all 32 member states participating over a six-month period from January to July 2024. The broader framework for the exercise has been set by confirmed NATO regional defence plans.
