at Ämari Air Base, Prime Minister Jüri Ratas met for the first time with the members of the French Air Forces who are participating in the NATO air defence mission and greeted the British crew of the multirole Lynx Wildcat AH1 helicopters as well as the aviators of the National Guard of the United States, who will leave Estonia soon. 

The Prime Minister said that it is good to meet the members of the French Armed Forces on the day that Estonia joined the European Intervention Initiative, which was proposed by France. “The defence cooperation between France and Estonia is very strong today – bilaterally, multilaterally, as well as on the NATO level. Estonia is grateful to our allies, because their presence guarantees the security for us and the whole Baltic region. 

At the same time, we are making a significant contribution towards ensuring international security,” Ratas said. Estonia will soon send a 50-member unit to the French-led Operation Barkhane in Mali.

In Ämari, the Prime Minister and General Riho Terras, the Commander of the Defence Forces, were given an overview of the defence of the Baltic air space, which is carried out with the French Mirage 2000-5 jet fighters. France took over the air defence from the Italian units in Ämari in May.

Additionally, the Prime Minister was acquainted with the British helicopters that were used in the Siil 2018 exercise and the experiences of the members of the United States Air Force about conducting training in Estonia. The National Guard unit that operated with F-16 Fighting Falcons was in Ämari for the international exercise Saber Strike.