“This is a historic decision that demonstrates the development of our Defence Forces, but also our integration with NATO,” said Minister of Defence Hanno Pevkur. “The establishment of the division will significantly increase our defence and resilience capabilities,” he stressed.
The amendment of the statutes grants the minister of defence the right to appoint the commander of the division. The appointment is based on a proposal by the commander of the Defence Forces. The division is to comprise the 1st and 2nd Infantry Brigades, Logistics Battalion and Headquarters Support and Signal Battalion of the Defence Forces and an allied brigade which, under previous agreements, is a brigade assigned by the United Kingdom to Estonian defence.
“The division will create better opportunities for planning and practising the military defence of Estonia and the Baltic region in general in the framework of NATO. It creates a basis for rapid deployment of capabilities and forces currently located in Estonia and any reinforcements. Establishing the headquarters and the whole division is a great challenge. To this end, we need to reorganise the current headquarters and other subunits of the Defence Forces. In training the division, we will be supported by our allies from the UK and the U.S. The United Kingdom has decided to contribute its units to the division,” said Lieutenant General Martin Herem, Commander of the Defence Forces.
The division will be a wartime unit and regular structural unit whose main task is to plan and conduct military operations within its area of responsibility with units in its composition and those temporarily in its subordination. The division’s area of operation will cover the whole territory of Estonia.
Where necessary, the division may be assigned to the NATO chain of command by order of the commander of the Defence Forces.
For further information, contact the Ministry of Defence at [email protected].
