NATO Exercise Scenario Features Hiiumaa Invasion
The scenario in Steadfast Jazz, which runs from November 2 to 9, has been revealed, possibly allaying concerns from Estonia's real-life neighbors that it is a thinly veiled message to them.
In the scenario, the fictional country of Bothnia is experiencing domestic riots due to economic problems and turns to aggression against its neighbors.
Eesti Päevaleht reported that the 10-million-euro, 6,000-troop exercise is structured around a simulated attack from the northwest, not the east.
Two weeks after the crisis between Bothnia and Estonia starts, news reports state that Bothnia has invaded Hiiumaa and the UN is unable to find a diplomatic solution.
The NATO Response Force responds, commanded from Adaži, Latvia, along with logistics units, cyber defenders and chemical and biological weapons specialists.
Maj. Gen. Michel Yakovleff, planning officer on the staff of NATO Joint Force Command in Brunssum, said emphasis was being placed on verisimilitude of the situation in military terms, with unexpected twists in the scenario that only the higher-ups know about.
CORRECTION: A previous version of this story suggested that the fictional country of Bothnia was to the west. In fact it lies to the north and northwest of Estonia.