On June 20, at a formal ceremony held at the Estonian Military Academy in Tartu, Viktor Kalnitski took over the leadership of the institution from Vahur Karus, the EDF reported.

Vahur Karus has been serving in the Estonian Defense Forces since 1993. He received his military education in Sweden and the United States, has served as the commander of the Scouts Battalion, the military advisor to the chief of defense and the deputy head of the national defense planning department at the Ministry of Defense. Prior to becoming the rector of the Estonian Military Academy, Karus was the commander of the 1st Infantry Brigade. From 2002 to 2003, he participated in an overseas mission in Kosovo, and from 2006 to 2007, he was the commander of the Estonian contingent in Afghanistan.

Karus has been recognized with several awards, including for participation in international military operations, the Land Officer's Gold Cross, the Scouts Battalion Decoration, the Defense Forces Decoration and the Service Cross for Meritorious Service in National Defense.

Brig. Gen. Viktor Kalnitski began his service in the Defense Forces in 1994 as a conscript in the Northern Single Infantry Company, where he served as a squad leader and platoon leader after completing the senior non-commissioned officer course. Brig. Gen. Kalnitski graduated from the Finnish National Defense University, has advanced his training with various artillery and leadership courses and completed senior and general staff officer courses in Finland.

He has previously served as the head of the personnel department of the EDF Joint Headquarters and as a senior staff officer in the Foreign Service and Training Department's foreign group. Additionally, Brig. Gen. Kalnitski has led the operations section in the Operations and Planning Department of the Defense League Headquarters and has served as a senior staff officer in operations and as an artillery inspector in the Land Forces Headquarters. Before joining the latter, Brig. Gen. Kalnitski served in the Artillery Battalion as a battery, staff and battalion commander and held positions in the Defense League as the commander of both the Viru District and the Northeastern Defense Region.

Prior to his appointment as rector of the Estonian Military Academy, Brig. Gen. Kalnitski was the head of the training department of the EDF Joint Headquarters. He has also participated in three international military operations in Afghanistan and served as a senior staff officer in the planning department of NATO's Multinational Corps Northeast in Poland.

The Estonian Military Academy is Estonia's only higher education institution dedicated to national defense, providing training for officers and non-commissioned officers for the Defense Forces and the Defense League. In addition, the college offers military advanced training and conducts research and development activities related to national defense.

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