Nation Needs Independent Defense, Says Insider
Estonia should not be spooked by Russia's troop buildup on the other side of the border, but nevertheless needs to beef up its defensive capabilities, according to retired Defense Forces Lt. Col. Raivo Tamm.
In an interview with ETV, Tamm said that not enough attention was being paid to the shift in Russian deployment, which came to light in September when a report by the Finnish Defense Academy's strategic studies institute found that Russia had doubled the number of troops in its northwestern region in a short period.
"Obviously there won't be an attack on Monday morning […] However, we must bear in mind that technically and theoretically it is possible. I don't see a reason to panic, but we need to give more serious consideration to this action and think about what we will do next," he said.
Tamm advocated a balanced approach to security, which includes continued cooperation with EU and NATO structures, but said that Estonia needed to have the capability to independently deal with threats because it would take time for those international structures to step in.
As an example, he pointed to the Russo-Georgian war of 2008, which he said caught the world off guard. "As we can see, the reaction took time. In order to give Estonia time, we need to be capable of defending [ourselves]," he said.
Steve Roman