"Exercise Pikne was one of the many exercises led by the Estonian Division during which we were able to practice elements of our actual war plan," said exercise director Maj. Gen. Indrek Sirel, commander of the Estonian Division, according to a press release.

"The exercise sent a clear signal that we are ready to defend our country, and to do so together with our allies," he added.

Pikne focused on allied cooperation on land, in the air and at sea. The exercise involved units from the Estonian Defense Forces (EDF) and the volunteer Estonian Defense League (EDL) together with allied units from France, the U.K., the U.S. and Latvia.

Pikne was conducted from December 2-15.

During the first week of the exercise, activities were primarily conducted in Northern and Northeastern Estonia, as well as on the Gulf of Finland.

In this phase, NATO practiced rapid deployment of its troops to a conflict zone, integrating them into a multinational battlegroup in Estonia, and cooperation in countering threats on land, in the air and at sea.

The second week centered around a live fire exercise in Sirgala Training Area involving units from France, the U.K., Latvia and the EDL.

Flexible snap exercise

The additional snap exercise Okas 24-2 was announced for reservists of the 1st Infantry Brigade's Engineer Battalion from December 3-15, and the Estonian Division's Air Defense Battery from December 3-8.

Air Defense troops trained on procedures for air threats, while engineer units established positions for units conducting defensive operations.

Reserves from the Air Defense Battery were dismissed from the exercise on the morning of December 8.

Reserve troops of the Engineer Battalion were involved in the form of a flexible snap exercise, and thus temporarily released from duty on December 7 with orders to remain in high readiness to return to service when ordered to do so.

The troops from the Engineer Battalion were ordered to return as of December 13, after which they received additional training on tactics and experience from Ukraine, among other things, as well as celebrated the battalion's birthday.

Part of NATO's Brilliant Eagle

Maj. Gen. Sirel explained that it was vital to link the exercise Pikne with the snap exercise Okas 24-2.

"In the case of escalation of tensions in the region, allies are ready to immediately send their units to Estonia," he highlighted. "While the allies are already operating in areas close to the border, we are able to mobilize our own troops, and this is what the exercise clearly demonstrated."

The multinational military exercise Pikne ("Lightning") was part of the NATO Vigilance Activity Brilliant Eagle, focusing on allied rapid deployability and interoperability in the Baltic Sea region.

During the exercise, supplementary allied units were rapidly deployed to Estonia via land, sea and air to support and train together with the NATO multinational battlegroup and the EDF in a simulated war situation.

Click here for more photos from the exercise Pikne and snap exercise Okas.

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