James Heappey visited Hanno Pevkur, Estonia’s newly appointed defence minister, and chatted with troops from the Royal Welsh and 2nd Battalion, the Rifles.
James Heappey, the minister of armed forces, and Hanno Pevkur, the minister of defence of Estonia
During a trip to Estonia, James Heappey, the minister of the armed forces, saw members of his former unit, the 2 Rifles, who guard NATO’s borders.
The minister visited Tapa, where more than 1,600 British forces are stationed, to see military exercises and interact with service members.
Additionally, he spoke with Hanno Pevkur, Estonia’s newly appointed defence minister, on our shared efforts to protect Ukraine and defend European security.
James Heappey, minister of the armed forces, said:
On the opposite side of their border, our neighbours in Estonia constantly face the prospect of a hostile Russia.
The UK will remain steadfast with Estonia both bilaterally and via NATO, and I’m proud of the way British soldiers are stationed here, ready to battle whenever and wherever they are required.
A NATO enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) battlegroup is now being led by more than 800 members of the 1st Battalion, the Royal Welsh.
In addition, the UK has sent a second battlegroup of around 800 soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, the Rifles to the nation in reaction to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
As part of a greater UK commitment to NATO, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said in June that the lethality of these deployments will be improved with cutting-edge equipment including helicopters and artillery weapons. In the meanwhile, the UK will enlarge its current Tallinn headquarters.
It will facilitate the quick deployment of high readiness soldiers at the brigade level under the command of a Brigadier.
Additionally, the UK will help Estonia with logistics and training, the creation of its first divisional-level headquarters, the development of new combat strategies through their joint hosting of the Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic European Headquarters, and the funding of creative dual-use start-ups through the NATO Innovation Fund.