Preventive defense: Estonia installs concrete bunkers on the border with Russia

Estonia has begun installing its first concrete bunkers along its southeastern border with Russia. The structures are not isolated objects, but a key element of a multi-layered defense system to repel a potential invasion.

This is reported by Defense News.

As explained by Krismar Rozin, a representative of the Estonian Defense Investment Center, seven shelters are ready for installation as of this week. In total, the authorities plan to deploy 28 bunkers by the end of the year. These structures will become the first line in a network of 600 shelters that are being created to strengthen the eastern flank of the European Union and NATO.

The shelters, which are approximately 35 “squares” in area, must withstand hits from 152-mm artillery shells. They are part of a multi-layered defense system designed to prevent a possible Russian invasion. According to Rozin, stocks of barbed wire and “dragon’s teeth” barriers have already been formed, which are stored on pre-prepared sites in anticipation of installation if necessary.

The final timeline for the bunkers’ construction remains uncertain, Rozin said. The structures will be deployed in Setomaa municipality and southeastern Estonia, with 27 of them located on state or municipal land and one on private property. “Currently, [the bunkers] are in the process of being deployed, but are not yet fully ready,” the Center said in an email.

The publication emphasizes that the shelters in Estonia are being built as part of the Baltic Defense Line, which Lithuania and Latvia have also joined. Tallinn has allocated 60 million euros for the implementation of its part of the project, of which about 30 million have been spent so far. The tender for the construction of the remaining 572 bunkers is planned to be held by the end of the year.

As a reminder, European countries are preparing for a possible invasion by Russia without US participation, amid the reduction of the American military presence on the continent. NATO countries in Europe are already adapting defense plans and strengthening their own military capabilities.

As “Pryamiy” reported, Baltic leaders are considering the possible dismantling of the railway to the Russian Federation and Belarus . The presidents of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia have agreed that they will make any decision on dismantling the railway connection with Russia and Belarus jointly.

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