The government amended the constitution of the defense forces to create a division as a structural unit of the defense forces as agreed at the NATO Madrid summit.
"This is a historic decision, which on the one hand shows the development of our defense forces, but also the integration with NATO," said Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur Hanno Pevkur is an Estonian politician. . "Establishing the division will significantly increase our defense and resistance capabilities," he emphasized.
By amending the regulation, the Minister of Defense is given the right to appoint a division commander. The appointment is based on the proposal of the head of the defense forces. The composition of the division includes the 1st and 2nd infantry brigades, the logistics battalion and the headquarters and communications battalion, as well as the allied brigade, which, according to previous agreements, is the brigade designated by the United Kingdom for the defense of Estonia.
"The division creates better opportunities than today to plan and practice the military defense of Estonia and the wider Baltic region within the framework of NATO. This creates opportunities for quick use of the forces and capabilities that are located at our place and will be reinforced. Building a divisional headquarters and a whole division is a big challenge. To do this, we have to reorganize today's General Staff of the Defense Forces and some other subdivisions of the Defense Forces. In the training of the division, we are supported by allies from the UK and the USA. The United Kingdom has decided to contribute its units to the division," said the head of the defense forces, Lieutenant General Martin Herem Martin Herem is an Estonian lieutenant general and the current Commander of the Estonian Defence Forces since 2018. .
A division is a wartime unit and a permanently operating structural unit, the main task of which is to plan and execute military operations with the units in the formation and temporarily subordinated within its area of responsibility. The division's operational area covers the entire territory of Estonia.
If necessary, the division can be transferred to the NATO chain of command with the command authority of the commander of the defense forces.