Nearly 1,000 taking part in massive Estonian evacuation exercise

By Leila Nezirevic

LONDON (AA) - Nearly 1,000 people are taking part Saturday in Estonia’s largest-ever evacuation exercise in preparation for “a possible military crisis,” the Rescue Board said in a statement.

Estonians are attending a three-day exercise in the southern part of the Baltic country, which began Friday.

The South Bridge exercise, organized by the Rescue Board and the Estonian Defense League (EDL), is rehearsing the evacuation of border region residents from a simulated danger zone.

Lt. Col. Raul Kutt, chief of the EDL's Southern Territorial Defense District, said the aim is to rehearse the entire evacuation chain in preparation for a possible military crisis.

"Since a large-scale civilian evacuation impacts society as a whole, it's important to emphasize three key objectives to government authorities, local governments and the population at large regarding why we'll do this in the event of a possible military crisis.

"To protect civilians from injuries and damages resulting from military operations; to ensure our units' operational flexibility and freedom of movement in a combat area; and to prevent the terrorization and deportation of civilians who remain in areas under enemy control. These are not just words; all of this has been confirmed by the last two and a half years in Ukraine," said Kutt.

The initiative is conducted in close cooperation with the EDL, the Women's Voluntary Defense Organization (Naiskodukaitse, NKK) and local governments as well as the Police and Border Guard Board (PPA), Emergency Response Center, Social Insurance Board (SKA) and the Estonian Red Cross.

Approximately 800 volunteers will be evacuated from Polva, Voru, Valga and Tartu counties to nearby Viljandi County, according to national broadcaster ERR.

The Rescue Board stressed that similar exercises in other countries have proven that evacuations are one of the most vital civil defense mechanisms in crises, and the lives of hundreds and thousands can depend on their success.

“Our eastern neighbor's behavior in recent years has shown that we must be prepared for even the most serious scenarios. If we're prepared for the worst, we'll be prepared for anything,” Tagne Tahe, director of the Rescue Board's Southern Rescue Center said, referring to Russia.

Russia’s 2022 war against Ukraine has sent tensions in the Baltics skyrocketing from those who fear the Kremlin could threaten their security and independence.

Moscow, however, blames Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania for severing most ties with Russia.

"Because of the openly hostile line of Vilnius, Riga and Tallinn, all interstate, interdepartmental, regional and sectoral ties with Russia have been severed," Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharov said earlier this year.

Zakharov warned that the Kremlin would respond with asymmetric measures to “the hostile actions of the Baltic states with asymmetrical measures, primarily in the economic and transit spheres.”