Estonian journalist Kaldre describes NATO’s preparations to defend eastern flank
Estonian journalist Peeter Kaldre wrote in a column for ERR News that NATO is continuing military planning and preparing to defend the eastern flank in the event of an attack by Russia, an aggressor state. According to him, Estonian diplomats working at NATO have not noticed any weakening of the Alliance’s military posture regardless of political statements.
Steadfast Dart exercise
Kaldre referred to the 2025 British documentary series “Inside NATO: The Battle to Stop Putin,” dedicated to the Alliance’s ability to rapidly deploy forces to the eastern flank. The film covers the annual Steadfast Dart exercise, during which 10,000 military personnel along with equipment were deployed on NATO’s eastern flank.
Under the exercise scenario, Russia attacked the Baltic states with large forces, while the allies had to provide assistance quickly. As the author noted, the goal was to complete the deployment within ten days, but it was achieved in eight and a half days. The documentary also showed military equipment malfunctions, difficulties in deploying field hospitals, and the adaptation of military personnel from southern countries to weather conditions.
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Allied presence
In Kaldre’s view, an important element of deterrence is the presence of allied contingents in the Baltic states, including British, French, and US military personnel in Estonia. He believes Lithuania will become an even stronger deterrent signal if Germany permanently deploys a brigade of more than 4,000 service members there.
The author also mentioned unannounced NATO exercises on August 18 near Kaliningrad involving US and Norwegian fighter jets, Polish ground forces, and AWACS aircraft. In addition, he wrote about the US decision in late August to deploy four Tomahawk cruise missile launchers in Trondheim, as well as the Northern Viking exercise near Iceland aimed at countering the Russian submarine fleet. According to Kaldre, the United States did not take part in these exercises for the first time, and France was the lead country.
Kaldre stressed that military personnel must be psychologically prepared for brutal trench warfare, referring to the experience of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
