The deployments are to UN, EU and NATO missions.

The Riigikogu's National Defense Committee on Monday met to prepare the necessary bills on overseas military deployments, which state that Estonia will take part in seven missions next year.

Since 2023, up to 110 Estonian Defense Forces (EDF) members have been deployed at any one time to Iraq, the largest foreign mission, but from next year this will be nearly halved to 63.

The U.S.-led Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) aims to advise and support local Iraqi security forces in building up the country's defense system, over 20 years since the coalition invasion.

This will it is argued enable local security forces them to independently defeat extremist groups and to ensure peace and stability.

The EDF personnel are mostly based at Harir Air Base, in the Erbil Governorate, Kurdistan Region, in the northeast of the country.

This contingent is tasked with among other things providing personal protection, rapid response capabilities and ensuring base security.

The new bill states that deploying a smaller infantry unit will allow Estonia to continue performing most of its assigned tasks at a reduced scale, with the focus on the first two of the above tasks.

Estonia has been involved in OIR since 2016, though in 2023 the number of personnel deployed to the joint task force headquarters jumped up to the current 110, from just five previously

Estonia also supports NATO's training mission in Iraq (NMI) with one staff officer. NMI is aimed at strengthening Iraq's defense capabilities too.

Estonia will also contribute to missions in the Red Sea, the Mediterranean, Mozambique, Lebanon, and other parts of the Middle East, albeit with smaller contingents.

Starting this year, one EDF member has served in the Red Sea region, this time as part of the EU's operation EUNAVFOR Aspides, whose stated aim is the protection of freedom of navigation, to safeguarding maritime security, especially for merchant and commercial vessels in the Red Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Gulf.

As such it forms part of the EU Common Security and Defense Policy (CSDP).

Another Estonian staff officer serves at any one in the EU's military mission in the Mediterranean, more specifically in Libyan coastal waters. This mission was inaugurated in 2015, mainly as an anti-human trafficking effort.

The UN arms embargo on Libya is also being enforced as part of this mission, and this includes inspecting vessels in international waters near the Libyan coast which are suspected of transporting weapons or related materials.

Since late 2021, the EDF has also supported the EU's training mission in the East African nation of Mozambique, again with one staff officer, and aimed at aiding armed forces there in responding to the crisis in Cabo Delgado province, in northern Mozambique.

Estonia contributes to the mission via one legal advisor, whose role is to provide support to the mission commander on matters legal, plus to provide training to local armed forces on the subjects of human rights and the international law on armed conflict.

As for Lebanon, one Estonian staff officer contributes to the UN peacekeeping mission UNIFIL.

At present, this EDF member is based at the mission's headquarters in Naqoura, a small town in southern Lebanon, while their duties include analyzing observation results, preparing meetings, and enhancing situational awareness.

UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) dates back to the late 1970s and has around 10,500 peacekeepers coming from 50 troop contributing countries. It coordinates activities between the governments of Lebanon and Israel. And assists in ensuring humanitarian aid access for civilians, and supports the voluntary and safe return of internally displaced persons.

From 1997, Estonia has contributed one officer to the UN peacekeeping mission
United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) in the Middle East.

Since last year, an Estonian staff officer has been serving at the mission's headquarters in Jerusalem.

The international peacekeeping mission's role is to monitor compliance with peace and armistice agreements in the Middle East and to prevent minor incidents from escalating into larger conflicts.

UNTSO is the first ever UN peacekeeping mission, established in 1948, the same year the state of Israel was established.

EDF personnel have contributed to foreign operations since 1995, starting with the UN peacekeeping mission to Croatia.

EDF members gained their first combat experience since independence with the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

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