Estonian security policy17.10.2007 The goal of Estonian security policy is to maintain Estonia's sovereignty, territorial integrity, constitutional order and public safety. Since international security is indivisible from our own, the guiding principle of Estonian security and defence policy is to be an active provider of security on its own and to participate in crisis management and peace operations led by different international organizations (NATO, UN, OSCE, EU). These principles have also been set out in the National Security Concept of the Republic of Estonia, passed in the Parliament in 2004. Estonia's accession to NATO and the EU significantly strengthened Estonia's security, while at the same time Estonia joined the coordinated security and defence co-operation of those organizations with the purpose of contributing to a wider creation of international peace and stability.
Membership in NATO, a collective defence organization, will ensure military security, allowing Estonia to participate productively in international security co-operation as well as representing the most certain guarantee of Estonia's national defence. Active NATO membership will always remain the top priority of Estonian security and defence policy. The basis for reforms being implemented to fulfil that purpose is the Estonian Defence Forces medium-term development plan for 2005-2010, in which, similarly to other NATO member states, stress is laid on the development of mobile and sustainable armed forces and on enhancing the capability of contributing to international peacekeeping operations. NATO partnerships NATO has created a number of geographically defined forms of partnership. Although Estonia is convinced of their necessity and multilateral usefulness, Estonia acknowledges that in a changing world the present-day definitions of partnership forms are becoming outdated. The formation of new partnership forms would satisfy the security policy needs of today and also be in concord with common values. Consequently, Estonia supports discussion directed at developing partnership formats, so that synergy from new forms would strengthen security on the Euro-Atlantic area as well as throughout the world. Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC) The Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council is the partnership format with the widest membership. Established in 1997 as a political forum for negotiations in the field of peace partnership, the Council currently consists of 26 NATO countries and 23 partner countries. The EAPC provides a basis for practical co-operation and consultation between NATO member countries and partner countries. Since the latest rounds of NATO enlargement, the EAPC includes fewer countries for which NATO membership is still prospective, and thus interest towards the forum has decreased. Estonia's position is that since the character of the EAPC has changed over time, the specifics of partner countries should be taken more into consideration and the purpose of the EAPC - to contribute through a political dialogue and practical co-operation to the strengthening of peace and stability of the Euro-Atlantic region - is still necessary and highly valued. "Partnership for Peace" (PfP) The Partnership for Peace initiative was launched at the 1994 Brussels Summit and Estonia participated in it from inception until it joined NATO. This programme aims at enhancing peacekeeping capabilities and increasing the interoperability of the partner country's military forces with those of NATO through joint planning, training and exercises. Participation in PfP has been of high importance to Estonia. As a member of NATO, Estonia values highly its own experience and supports a strong relationship and enhanced co-operation between Alliance and PfP Partner countries. Estonia places a high value on the methods worked out in the framework of the programme and considers it possible to use them for enhancing new developing formats of partnership.
Participation in peacekeeping operations, which began four years after the regaining of independence, continues to be one of Estonia's priority activities in creating peace and stability in the world. Estonia devotes about 5% of its defense budget to peacekeeping operations. In 2007, over 250 servicemen participated in several international peacekeeping operations.Estonia has sent different units and specialists to crisis areas: infantry, military police, staff officers, medics, EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) specialists, air movement control, military observation, transient maintenance and cargo handling. Major missions Afghanistan - Estonia joined the fight against terrorism in 2002 in the US-led Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. Since 2003, Estonia has participated in the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF - International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan), which has since become NATO's most important mission. This is also our armed forces' most important military operation, and currently we have 120 Estonian servicemen participating. Most of the Estonian contingent (an 80-member infantry unit and a 15-member mine-clearing team) is stationed in southern Afghanistan's Helmand province, which is thought to be a crucial area in terms of stabilising the nation. Estonia believes that co-operation between military and civil operations is essential for the reconstruction of Afghanistan, and we function on the assumption that Estonia's military contribution will be supported by civil contributions and development aid. For the past few years, Afghanistan has been one of Estonia's priorities in development co-operation, so we have also sent some of our civil officials there (the head of special diplomatic missions, a defence advisor, and a police officer for the EU Police mission). Balkans - Kosovo (KFOR) - Estonia has been participating since 1999 in the NATO peace support mission in Kosovo (KFOR). At the moment, Estonian field officers are residing in KFOR headquarters, and a 26-member Estonian intelligence unit is functioning as part of the Danish battalion in Mitrovica, in the northern part of Kosovo. Since Kosovo presents a problem within Europe, and finding a resolution is a priority for both the EU and NATO, Estonia feels it is crucial to keep contributing to the efforts as long as the need for aid remains. Iraq - Since 2003, Estonia has stood in the ranks of the international coalition in Operation Iraqi Freedom. At the moment there are 34 infantrymen and field officers in Iraq, at the request of the Iraqi government and in response to the UN mandate. Estonia also supports the NATO instructional mission in Iraq with supplies and 2 military instructors.
Support for NATO membership among Estonian citizens has remained on a high level, and the number of ethnic Estonians supporting the alliance is particularly high. A survey in 2006 showed that 75% of all respondents supported NATO membership. The outcome did not differ significantly in surveys conducted in the spring and fall of that year (for which the results showed 74% and 76% respectively). As to how Estonia's security situation changed after accession to NATO in the spring of 2004, 53% of respondents answered that the situation has improved. 37% considered the situation unchanged and 2% believed the situation had worsened. 67% of all respondents saw NATO membership as one of the most important Estonian security guarantees; this was followed by 45%, who considered good relations with Russia more important and 43% of respondents placed importance on defence co-operation with other Baltic nations. The majority of the Estonian population continued to support maintaining national defence expenditures at the current level or even increasing them: 39% thought defence spending should be raised, 40% would maintain it at the current level and 11% would like to see defence funding cut back.
Accession to the European Union has, along with membership in NATO, strengthened Estonia's security, and the EU's own activities have also been enhanced in the fight against the world's security threats. The European Union Common Foreign and Security Policy serves as the EU's instrument for ensuring global security. The objective of the European Union Common Foreign and Security Policy has remined the same since its inception: to enhance security, to maintain lasting peace, to promote international co-operation, and to develop democracy. The EU operates in the framework of CFSP as a unitary block, in which each member state equally participates in all foreign policy actions of the EU and thus forms a part of the whole. Estonia's priorities in CFSP are set out in the strategic framework document "The Estonian Government's European Union Policy": the enhancement of the activities of the EU in reducing the world's security risks pursuant to the European security strategy, the safeguarding of security and stability in the EU's close neighbourhood, the supporting of economic growth and of the democratic model of society based on market economy, and maintaining a strong transatlantic tie. Estonia has set a goal of actively contributing to the dissemination of democratic values and to the creation of economic stability in the European Union's neighbourhood, considering this the best means of safeguarding peace. Estonia supports the strengthening of the EU's Neighbourhood Policy and took part in working out an action plan for further improvement of the policy, which was accepted by the European Council in June 2007. Estonia has increased and will continue to increase its presence in many ENP nations. We support many successful development co-operation projects in ENP nations (Georgia, Ukraine, Moldova). We continue to flesh out a more specific framework for co-operation projects, and we have also begun to monitor the implementation of our development co-operation projects more intensively than before. Estonia's participation in civil missionsAn important part of Estonia's security policy is contributing to the development of the European Union's military and civil capabilities through participation in European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP). The EU should emphasize developing its civil capabilities; this then increases the effectiveness of NATO activities and helps the two great organisations complement one another's actions. In the summer of 2007, an Estonian armed forces unit successfully completed its activities as part of the EU's military mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Estonian police officers, border patrol guards, customs officials and other experts of civil matters will continue their activities in the western Balkans, Moldova, Georgia, and Afghanistan.
As a member of the EU and NATO, Estonia is a more relevant partner than ever in international co-operation, and we have managed to make use of that circumstance in bilateral relations with other countries. Our membership also allows us to support development trends created by such international organizations as the UN, OSCE and the Council of Europe that are in our own interests. Estonia has developed active bilateral defence co-operation with almost all NATO member countries and many other partners. Defence co-operation with major NATO member states such as the US, Great Britain, Germany and France has been and is of great importance. The closest co-operation has taken place between Estonia and its northern neighbours Denmark, Finland, and Norway, and its southern neighbours Latvia and Lithuania. The common political goal - NATO accession - has led Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania to create several successful trilateral defence projects in the framework of the NATO PfP initiative. Since all the Baltic States are full members of the alliance, the security environment of the Baltic States has in many ways changed compared to the situation ten years ago. Thus, trilateral co-operation is also undergoing changes in line with new goals and challenges emanating from NATO membership. Trilaterally, several joint projects have been initiated, some of which have lasted from their inception up to the present with others having been terminated upon attaining goals (BALTBAT, BALTSEA). Major projects in trilateral co-operation between the Baltic States: BALTRON (Baltic Naval Squadron) is an example of successful Baltic naval co-operation. The squadron was established in 1998 for the participation in international peace support operations. Now, after Baltic membership in NATO, BALTRON will serve as a part of a training structure for NATO's Mine Countermeasure (MCM) unit. The Baltic naval co-operation has since 2005 provided a basis for one Estonian, Latvian or Lithuanian ship to be at the disposal of NATO immediate reaction forces on a rotating basis. The first to serve that purpose was an Estonian command and support ship, the Admiral Pitka. BALTNET (Baltic Airspace Surveillance Network) - is a system established in 1998 for acquisition, co-ordination, distribution and display of air surveillance data within the three Baltic States. The Regional Airspace Surveillance Co-ordination Centre (RASCC) is based in Lithuania. BALTDEFCOL (Baltic Defence College) The joint military education institution established in 1998 to provide Baltic and partner country officers a single military education. The core function of the college is to conduct the Joint Command and General Staff Courses for mid-career officers of the defence forces of the Baltic States and other countries. In 2004, the college also began to conduct a Higher Command Studies Course (HCSC). HCSC is an international course that is meant for higher officers and officials and focuses on leading and a leader's roll in today's security environment and current military operations. For the 2007-2008 academic year, there are officers and civil servants from 24 nations studying at BALTDEFCOL. The quality of instruction is ensured by the active participation of foreign instructors; currently there are instructors from 15 countries, including Norway, France, Denmark, Germany, Canada, and the United States. The very newest and most ambitious tri-lateral co-operation project to date is the formation of a unified Baltic motorized infantry battalion, which is currently in the preparation stage. It should be ready to join the NATO Response Force's quick-response land element (NRF-14) in the first half of 2010. The Baltic nations' co-operation in the area of joint acquisitions has picked up momentum as well. To date, preparations for acquiring ammunition and radars have progressed the most.
In September 1991, Estonia was admitted to the United Nations (UN). Estonia fulfils the main purpose of the UN, the ensuring of international peace and security, primarily by contributing to the international fight against terrorism and to UN peacekeeping operations. Two Estonian military observers have participated in the UN peacekeeping mission UNTSO in the Middle East. Estonia has also taken part in the training of UN peacekeepers. Estonia has acceded to 12 UN conventions against terrorism and undersigned the last convention adopted by the UN General Assembly in April 2005 - the International Convention on the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism. In 1991, Estonia joined the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE), which in December 1994 became the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). Estonia actively takes part in military and security co-operation on the basis of the OSCE's Vienna Document and the Open Skies Agreement. In addition, Estonian experts participate in OSCE missions, contributing to the enhancing of stability and security in the Western Balkans, Moldova and South Caucasus. The strategic goods control system in Estonia will result in enhanced capability for defence of Estonia's security interests and also improve Estonia's capacity to fight against the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and international terrorism. Estonia has joined the main international organizations co-ordinating the strategic goods control, such as the Wassenaar Agreement, the Australia Group and the Nuclear Suppliers Group.
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