News

Today, October 15, the NATO-wide command post exercise Steadfast Duel 26 concluded. The exercise tested the functioning of NATO’s command structures and chains of command and rehearsed the implementation of defence plans.

NATO Force Integration Unit Estonia (NFIU Estonia) has successfully completed its latest certification process, a recurring assessment during which the unit’s readiness, capabilities and ability to cooperate with higher NATO headquarters were evaluated. The assessment, which lasted nearly four months, was conducted by the Estonian Defence Forces Headquarters in cooperation with NATO’s Joint Logistics Support Group Brunssum (JLSG BS).

On Tuesday, October 6, NATO’s large-scale command-and-staff exercise Steadfast Duel 26 began. The exercise focuses on testing the functioning of NATO command structures and chains of command, as well as practising the implementation of defence plans.

On Tuesday, 15 September, General Carsten Breuer, Chief of Defence of the German Armed Forces, paid a visit to Estonia, during which he had a meeting with Lieutenant General Andrus Merilo, Commander of the Estonian Defence Forces.

On Friday, July 31, a ceremonial handover and a medal ceremony took place in Ämari Air Base, Estonia, during which Portuguese Air Force personnel, who had been patrolling the airspace of the Baltic states, handed over the surveillance to Turkish Air Force personnel, who will now begin providing air defence in the region with their F-16 fighter aircrafts.

On Monday, June 22, the Estonian Air Defence Wing received the first mobile air defence missile systems IRIS-T SLM (InfraRed Imaging System Tail/Thrust vector-controlled Surface-Launched Medium range) at Ämari Air Base, giving the Estonian Defence Forces the ability to engage air threats from greater distances and altitudes than the existing short-range systems. The system was procured by the Estonian Centre for Defence Investments (ECDI) from the German defence company Diehl Defence.

The multinational NATO medical exercise Vigorous Warrior 2026 concluded today in Estonia after bringing together military and civilian medical systems to train medical support in crisis and wartime conditions. Held from 8 to 20 June, the exercise involved participants from around 30 Allied and Partner nations, and was organized by the Hungary-based NATO Centre of Excellence for Military Medicine in cooperation with the Estonian Defence Forces and the Estonian Health Board.

On Friday, June 12, NATO’s multinational medical exercise Vigorous Warrior 2026 entered its active phase, during which the allied and partner nations are training together in Estonia to ensure military medical support, enhance interoperability between medical units, and implement innovative medical solutions.

On Wednesday, June 10, a two-day A2/AD (Anti-Access/Area Denial) seminar organized by the NATO Force Integration Unit Estonia (NFIU Estonia) in Tallinn, Estonia, concluded. The event opened with a keynote address by the Commander of the Estonian Defence Forces, Lieutenant General Andrus Merilo, and brought together more than 100 representatives from NATO nations to discuss developments, challenges, and opportunities related to A2/AD in the Baltic Sea region and beyond.

From June 8 to 20, Estonia will host the NATO medical exercise Vigorous Warrior 2026. Organized by the Estonian Defence Forces, the NATO Centre of Excellence for Military Medicine and the Estonian Health Board, the exercise will train multinational medical support and civil-military cooperation in a realistic operational environment. Activities will take place primarily in Harju and Lääne-Viru counties.