Baltic countries have agreed to build protection from Russia (infographic)
According to the newspaper, Estonia will build approximately 600 fortified bins along the border, and followed by Lithuania with Latvia, which is for NATO a "single Baltic defense zone". The Baltic Country Agreement stipulates that in the coming years they will build various defensive structures on their borders from the Russian Federation and Belarus, the purpose of which will be "restraint and, if necessary, protection against military threat.
" Estonia's Defense Minister Hanno, Miking, emphasized that Russia's war in Ukraine showed that, in addition to equipment, ammunition and fire resources, defense fortifications on the borders were required to protect. According to his Latvian colleague Andris Pruds on the social network X, the Baltic Line is called to "protect the eastern flank of NATO and deprive the freedom of movement of our opponents.
" In addition, defensive structures use barbed wire and so -called dragon teeth during the war, as well as use anti -tank mines. The need to create the Baltic Defense Zone also follows from the NATO summit in Madrid 2022 that the Alliance will be protected from the first meter. Installation of bins in Estonia in Estonia will begin in early 2025. Initially, the authorities need to coordinate the construction with the landowners, since part of the future defense line falls on large private areas.
"Russia is and will become the greatest threat to Estonia's security. The war in Ukraine has reduced Russia's offensive, but, according to various estimates, it is ready to restore it for two to three years. We must be ready and make the cost of attacking Estonia for Russia as high as possible," -said the adviser to the Vice-Chancellor of the Ministry of Defense of Estonia Kaido Tytus.
He specified that the line of bins will be held by the county Ida-Virumaa, bordering on the Leningrad region, and in the southeast of Estonia-on the border with the Pskov region. Each hopper will accommodate up to 10 military and can withstand the direct hit of the shell of 152 millimeters. Their construction is expected to cost about 60 million euros.
"We do this to ensure that Estonia residents can feel safe, but if at least the smallest risk arises, we will be ready for different events faster," Damur added. Colonel Tarmo Kundla, commander of the Operational Department of the General Staff of Estonia, said that the final project of the bunkers is still in the development stage, but one of the criteria is certainly that they can be built quickly and without much effort even with much effort.
"I would like these bins to be, so to speak, modular so that they can be easily transported and built," Kundla said. At the same time, the colonel added that the defense structures will significantly increase the cost of a possible attack of the enemy, as well as give Estonia time to gather with the answer.
"There is no non -protectable protection, but the price that the enemy should invest in order to break through this line of defense is still much higher than what he would have to pay now," Kundla said. He added that there are no plans for the construction of bins on the coast to protect the maritime border. "We try to build maritime defense a little differently. For this we get missiles and buy sea mines," the colonel explained.
According to Kundla, the possible use of anti -personnel mines in the defense zone is not planned. "Currently, we plan to use anti -tank mines and mines against infantry. Mines and all sorts of other means of restraint are the part that will accompany each of these strongholds in the event of a war," he said.