TALLINN In September 2014, then-President of the United States Barack Obama quoted the Estonian poet in his speech during his visit to Estonia Marie Underia.
In 1943, he wrote in his dark poem about the fate of his country: “Who will help? Right now, right now? / The eye of the world is blind and the ear is deaf”.
Obama promised that if Estonia and the other Baltic countries are ever faced with the same question, the world will see and hear.
– You lost your independence once. With NATO, you’ll never lose it again.
However, many were skeptical both in Estonia and outside. Talk is cheap, a credible defense costs money.
Russia had just swallowed Crimea and engineered a war in eastern Ukraine. The power of that army only seemed to grow when Vladimir Putin decided to invest in the defense budget (you move to another service) a third more.
At the same time, NATO’s unity was crumbling. Few member countries of the Defense Alliance spent at least the jointly agreed two percent of gross domestic product on defense spending. The countries had their own interests and different relations with Russia.
The state of defense of the Baltic countries also seemed bad. In 2016 by the US Rand Research Institute according to the statement published (you will switch to another service) the result of the previous year’s map exercises showed that Russia would reach the capitals of the Baltic countries in 60 hours, i.e. just over two days.
A map exercise is a military exercise in which troops are not actually moved, but only imaginary.
Only the Russian attack opened the eyes
Estonian leaders have been warning about Russia for more than ten years, practically since Vladimir Putin roared west at the Munich Security Conference (you’ll switch to another service) in the year 2007.
However, in several European countries, including Finland, Estonia’s foreign policy leadership was treated a bit like troublemakers for a long time.
I saw this despite the fact that Russia became more aggressive year by year. The 2008 war in Georgia was followed by the annexation of Crimea to Russia in 2014. In the same year, the war in eastern Ukraine began.
In 2017, Russia trained according to the German magazine Bild (you switch to another service) already attacking not only the Baltic countries, but also Finland and Sweden and other countries in the Baltic Sea region.
However, it took a full-scale Russian attack on Ukraine before Europe’s eyes and ears really opened.
The Baltic countries now receive both political attention and military aid. It’s raining – you were right – lines.
The President of the European Commission was also in Tallinn to celebrate Estonia’s Independence Day Ursula von der Leyen that the Secretary General of NATO Jens Stoltenberg. It was just a solidarity visit, nothing else, but it was a great expression of support.
NATO’s multinational combat unit, which has been in Estonia since 2017, has recently been joined by US HIMARS rocket launchers and Spain’s NASAMS anti-aircraft system. NATO countries monitor Estonian airspace.
The infantry brigade assigned to the defense of Estonia is in constant readiness in Great Britain.
In addition, Estonia has consistently developed its own defense forces. It has ordered its own HIMARS, naval and anti-aircraft missiles, and more K9 anti-tank howitzers. The number of conscripts is increased and the wartime forces are increased.
Helping Ukraine is far from idealistic
Estonia is somewhat paradoxically better protected than ever before, even though there is a great power waging a war of aggression next door.
However, the country knows who to thank for this. The harsh truth is that the special attention that Estonia currently enjoys has been brought about by the suffering of Ukraine and Ukrainians.
Without it, the Estonian leadership with its Russia speeches might still be a nervous freak at international tables.
Estonia is aware of its debt of gratitude. It has invested in helping Ukraine and accepting Ukrainian refugees more compared to the population and gross domestic product (you switch to another service) than any other country.
A researcher in ‘s Saturday’s World Politics everyday program Benjamin Tallis agree with Estonia and especially the prime minister To Kaja Kallas the noble reference he named neo-idealism. The basis is unwavering support for Ukraine, even if it hurts financially.
I asked Kallas about this the other day. According to him, helping Ukraine is far from idealistic.
– Ukraine is at war against Russia, which has expressed its imperialist desires also in the direction of Estonia. So Ukraine is fighting for Estonia in the literal sense of the word, the Prime Minister said.
Therefore, according to Kallas, Estonia has a direct obligation to support Ukraine by all means as long as necessary.
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