EDF send out letters specifying wartime positions of media professionals
Over the past few days posts have appeared on social media that show letters sent by the Estonian Defence Forces, informing the recipients of their positions in the event of a war. The EDF are not amused.
The EDF didn’t want to comment on the amount of such letters sent out, and what the choice of positions for each recipient had been based on. “This is all confidential information I’m certainly not going to talk about,” the EDF’s strategic communications director, Vallo Toomet, told ERR’s Estonian news portal on Tuesday.
Toomet added that he didn’t recommend anyone to display publicly what they had received, as people outside Estonia were following this as well.
According to Toomet, the letters aren’t a sign of an impending war. He said that the armed forces’ wartime structure was continuously reviewed, and if information was available that someone was a highly qualified specialist in their field, sending out such a letter meant that the EDF appreciated that person’s ability to contribute in case of war.
Toomet added that it was easy enough to define who would be the strongest choice for media-related positions, as the names of these few highly qualified specialists were well known in Estonia.
He also confirmed that in a state of war, the people affected would naturally be required to serve.
According to information available to ERR, recipients of the letters include individuals that have never done military service. Toomet commented this saying that for these positions this wasn’t a requirement.
“Their skills don’t require them to have passed military service. They have analytical skills or what have you,” Toomet explained.
Editor: Editor: Dario Cavegn