Minister of Defence Hanno Pevkur awarded mission medals to soldiers from the U.S High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) platoon at the Tapa Military Campus on Wednesday.
“I sincerely thank you for your service in Estonia. Your presence has sent a clear message of deterrence, and our soldiers have learned a lot from you. Thank you for helping to make Estonia and the whole of NATO safer,” said Minister of Defence Pevkur in his speech.
The U.S. HIMARS platoon at Tapa and the U.S. infantry brigade that served in Võru have been in Estonia since December 2022.
Estonia expects to receive its own HIMARS systems by 2025, and acquiring basic skills and knowledge with U.S. units will allow them to be deployed more smoothly.
U.S. troops are in Estonia as part of a longer series of rotations that ensure a consistent U.S. troop presence in the Baltic States. It is part of the strengthening of NATO’s eastern flank announced by US President Joe Biden at the NATO Madrid Summit last June.
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