Estonia and the Donbas Scenario: A Misleading Analogy
By Igor Gretskiy
ICDS
“Parallels between Estonia and Ukraine are not particularly convincing.”
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“A Donbas scenario is most likely when a disoriented society, a demoralised military, a compromised elite, and the absence of reliable allies converge. Estonia, unlike pre-2014 Ukraine, has a clear understanding of the principal external threats to its sovereignty and would not face Russian aggression alone. It is a member of NATO, the world’s most powerful defence alliance. The presence of Allied troops on its territory not only strengthens practical defence capabilities but also signals a clear commitment to collective defence under the Washington Treaty. In a crisis, Estonia would be backed first and foremost by its regional partners, for whom an assault on a neighbour would also represent a direct threat. For the same reason, Estonia would stand by its Allies if they were attacked.
https://icds.ee/en/estonia-and-the-donbas-scenario-a-misleading-analogy/
“Interview: Estonia’s foreign intelligence service chief Kaupo Rosin.”
EU Observer
“FSB recruits residents of Estonia online: how it works.”
ERR
Europeans Ask: What Would It Mean to Defend One Another Without NATO?
By Steven Erlanger and Jeanna Smialek
New York Times
“European Union nations have a little-known obligation to protect one another. Experts caution it is no replacement for NATO.”
“The Iran war shows NATO is not ready to fight Russia.”
Politico Europe
“A Drone wall can never be a total guarantee, says Latvian Defence Minister.”
LSM
“Time for a different kind of NATO.”
Politico
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Cover photo:
Udeva mõisapargis on õide puhkenud sajad nartsissid.
https://www.err.ee/1610011462/galerii-udeva-moisapargis-on-oide-puhkenud-sajad-nartsissid
EstoNews On-Line:
https://estonewsoftheweek.blogspot.com/
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Drone fragments and Russian 'shadow fleet' oil pollution wash up onto Lääne-Virumaa beach
ERR | Postimees
“Local residents have in recent days found drone fragments on the Suureliiva beach, near the village of Vainupea in Lääne-Viru County, around 100 kilometers east of Tallinn. … spilled oil found on the same beach is thought to have come from tankers still at anchor off the uninhabited island of Vaindloo, around 20 km off the northern coast, and volunteers are working on the same beach to clean up that pollution. … small sticky lumps can be found along the shoreline all the way from Käsmu to Kunda.”
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https://news.err.ee/1610006875/oil-spill-cleanup-continues-on-estonia-s-north-coast-next-week
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“Report: The aftermath of Ukrainian drone attacks on Russia’s Baltic Sea ports.”
Novaya Gazeta
Estonia approves NATO allies' role in 'little green men' threats
ERR
“The government has approved a bill which would permit allied nations' personnel to take part in countering hybrid threats and engage in land and maritime border security. … The bill aims to handle phenomena such as the "little green men" seen in the shadow war in Ukraine which preceded the full-scale Russian invasion, or the hybrid migratory pressure put on eastern flank EU nations in recent years by the regime in Belarus, Russia's ally.”
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“Up to now the legal basis has been lacking for allied personnel to take part in law enforcement activities inside Estonia.”
2025 was Estonia's 3rd hottest year on record
ERR
“… with the average air temperature 1.6 degrees (C) above the norm for 1991–2020, the Environmental Board said. Europe's rapid warming is clearly reflected in Estonia's observation data, the agency said, adding that the five warmest years in Estonia's measurement history have all occurred since 2015.”
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“The summer of 2025 in Estonia was notably rainy, with total summer precipitation averaging 299 millimeters, almost one-third above the norm. Intense rainfall caused localized flooding in several areas and damaged agricultural and garden lands. … After heavy rain, summer houses in the Kudruküla area in Narva were flooded and some residents were evacuated.”
https://news.err.ee/1610009536/2025-was-estonia-s-3rd-hottest-year-on-record
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“Petseri kooliõpetaja pidas Putinile lühiloengu seto sibulapirukast ja mulgikapsast.”
Postimees
“Japanese Embassy releases Tallinn Sakura cherry blossom map.”
ERR
“USA Kongressi liige: Balti riigid on võtmetähtsusega kogu NATO julgeolekule.”
Postimees
“Russian soldiers should be banned from Schengen ‘for life’, says Estonian PM Kristen Michal.”
Euronews
“GPS-i häireid on tulnud aina juurde, kuid lennuohutus siiani ei kannata.”
ERR
“Estonia wants Europe to shut the door on Putin’s ex-fighters.”
Politico
“Hirm Moskva pärast? Venemaa teadaanne 9. mai paraadi eel on täielik kannapööre.”
Postimees Arvamus
“Intelligence chief urges tougher stance on Russia-linked saboteurs.”
TVP
“Türgi laskemoonatehas tooks Ida-Virumaale ligi 1000 töökohta.”
ERR
“Estonia says NATO disputes play into Putin’s hands.”
MSN
“Estonia falls to 3rd place on World Press Freedom Index 2026.”
ERR
“Finland and Estonia say US defence deliveries delayed over Middle East war.”
Global Banking & Finance Review
“The war in Ukraine has shown the importance of unmanned systems and air assets.”
Euractiv
Michelin Guide
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Around the Baltic Sea
“We were too soft on Russia before 2022.”
Interview with Finland’s
President Alexander Stubb
By Mihkel Kärmas
ERR
“The first thing to say is that Ukraine is in a much better position this year than it was a year ago. Ukraine is inflicting considerably more damage on Russia than Russia is able to cause on Ukraine. We work with three base-case scenarios: one, the war continues; two, there is a peace agreement; and three, one side — Russia or Ukraine — becomes significantly weakened. Right now, our base case is that the war will continue. So let's start preparing for next winter, especially in terms of energy.”
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“I don't see a peace agreement coming. We were quite close at one point, but as we now know, Russia does not want peace. I also don't see Ukraine weakening. On the contrary, I see Russia weakening economically and militarily.”
https://news.err.ee/1610009929/finland-s-president-stubb-we-were-too-soft-on-russia-before-2022
“Finland’s President Stubb: I'm very proud of my Estonian heritage.”
ERR
“President Stubb: Estonia has a special place in our heart.”
Office of the President of Finland
“Finland and Estonia call for stronger security response to Russia’s war in Ukraine.”
Odessa Journal
“Wars on the agenda as Stubb hosts Estonian and German presidents.”
Yle
Inside Stockholm’s
AI-Managed Café
Northern Voices
“At Andon Café in Vasastan, human baristas still make the coffee. The unusual part is not the coffee. It is the manager. Her name is Mona, and she is not human.”
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“The Stockholm café is being run behind the scenes by an AI chatbot developed through Andon Labs, a San Francisco-based startup. Mona is described as handling much of the managerial work that normally happens out of sight: hiring staff, ordering supplies, shaping the menu, sourcing suppliers, and managing operational decisions. Customers still see human workers preparing drinks and serving food, but the business logic behind the café is being pushed toward software. That makes Andon Café more than a novelty tech story. It is one of the clearest public-facing experiments yet in what researchers call algorithmic management.”
Make Europe’s Defenses Great Again
By Nico Lange
CEPA
“Europeans must be able to secure their own continent to reinforce and reshape NATO. That requires European-owned intelligence, command‑and‑control and communications systems, a European air and missile defense architecture, resilient European cyber and space capabilities, and shared logistics, as well as ammunition production. Without these strategic enablers, Europe remains dependent, vulnerable, and politically exposed.”
https://cepa.org/article/make-europes-defenses-great-again/
Baltics Warn Europe There's No Going Back to Life With Russia
Financial Post
“No one takes seriously that there will be peace soon and even after peace that Russia wouldn’t continue to be an aggressive country,” Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said in an interview on Wednesday.
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“Trump’s War Is Damaging U.S. Arms Exports to Allies.”
Foreign Policy
“Young people are hacking the border between Estonia and Latvia.”
Euronews
“Why Magyar Feels So Far From Finnish and Estonian, Yet So Close.”
Northern Voices
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Putin’s Forever War
Kremlin’s Loyal Praetorians
By Maria Domańska
Centre for Eastern Studies, Warsaw
“Russia’s ruling elite in wartime Putinism.”
https://www.osw.waw.pl/en/publikacje/point-view/2026-02-27/kremlins-loyal-praetorians
“Putin’s approval rating falls to its lowest point since Russia’s full-scale invasion began.”
Meduza
“Paraadi kärpimine näitab, et Venemaa viimaks kardab.”
Postimees Arvamus
“Russia drastically scales back May 9 Victory Day parade over fears of Ukrainian drone attacks.”
Le Monde
“Russia Still Sending Disabled Recruits to War as Manpower Strain Persists.”
Nordic Defence Review
“Can Russia meaningfully revitalize its economy using windfall oil and gas revenue?”
Riddle
Putin renames Russia’s spy academy after the founder of Soviet secret police
Novaya Gazeta
“The Academy of the Federal Security Service (FSB) in Moscow, which trains Russian intelligence personnel, has been renamed in honour of the first Soviet secret police chief Felix Dzerzhinsky, according to a decree issued by Vladimir Putin.”
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“Dzerzhinsky, commonly known as “Iron Felix”, was appointed by Vladimir Lenin in 1917 to head the Cheka, the first secret police agency in post-revolutionary Russia. One of the architects of the “Red Terror” which saw tens of thousands executed between 1918–1922, Dzerzhinsky’s brutal approach meant he was one of the key Soviet historical figures whose legacies were reassessed in a wave of de-communisation in the 1990s.”
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“Independent Russian journalist Dmitry Kolezev said that the latest decision to honour Dzerzhinsky was a “sign” of the Kremlin’s intentions, coming after recent decisions to “close the Gulag museum and tear down memorials to victims of repression.”
40 Years Later, Chernobyl Remains a Lesson in the Unthinkable
The Moscow Times
“Since its invasion of Ukraine commenced in February of 2022, Moscow’s troops have invaded and attacked the Chernobyl site, bombed a research reactor at Kharkiv’s Institute of Physics and Technology in Ukraine’s east and taken over Europe’s largest civilian nuclear power plant, the six-reactor Ukrainian facility at Zaporizhzhia, claiming it as Russian property. All the while, Russian supersonic missiles continue to whiz within mere kilometers of not just Chernobyl, but also the Khmelnytskyi plant, one of Ukraine’s three still-operating nuclear stations.”
“Nature Blooms Around Chernobyl.”
Transitions
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