Russia Intensifies Pressure on Estonia’s Narva With Jamming, Drones, and Propaganda

Estonia’s border city of Narva has become a flashpoint for growing tensions with Russia, as Tallinn ramps up defenses against alleged provocations that include GPS jamming, surveillance drones, and propaganda-laden blimps, according to Politico on December 26.

“We are not intending to start a third world war, but we see the constant attempts to provoke us,” said Egert Belitšev, head of Estonia’s Police and Border Guard Board.

Located on the frontier with Russia, Narva, a city of 56,000 where 96% of residents speak Russian, is seen by the Estonian military as a potential weak point.

There is concern that the Kremlin might attempt to exploit the large ethnic Russian population in eastern Estonia as a pretext for aggression.

“When the invasion occurs, it’s already too late,” said the country’s Defense Minister, Hanno Pevkur. “We need to look into the early warning system, and be clear in advance that if the first person comes over the border then we will respond immediately.”

Estonia’s 338-kilometer border with Russia presents significant challenges. This year alone, border incursions jumped to 96 from just 18 in the previous two years, largely due to Russia’s removal of boundary buoys in the Narva River. Without these markers, distinguishing accidental trespasses from intentional breaches has become difficult.

Additionally, Russia’s GPS signal jamming in the area hampers Estonia’s ability to track drones, smugglers, and unauthorized aircraft. The swampy terrain of the southern border, though a natural barrier in summer, freezes in winter, creating a potential landing strip for aircraft.

Estonia’s solution is to install surveillance technology across every meter of the border, but as Belitšev admitted, “That’s easier said than done.”

In 2022, shortly after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, Putin implied that Narva historically belongs to Russia, further stoking fears in the region.

While NATO has troops stationed in Estonia, including 900 British soldiers at the Tapa air base, Belitšev voiced concerns about the alliance’s preparedness. He criticized allies for focusing on evacuation strategies rather than bolstering immediate defenses.

“I think the awareness is not there as much we have it,” he said of Western allies.

“It wasn’t there in 2008 [when Russia invaded Georgia], it wasn’t there in 2014 [when Crimea was annexed] and it’s not there now … people don’t understand the actual situation.”

Estonia, which already allocates 3.4% of its GDP to defense (one of the highest in NATO), plans to increase that to 3.7% next year.

Earlier, Estonia kicked off a two-week-long international military exercise, Pikne , aimed at testing the rapid deployment of allied reinforcements in support of Estonia’s NATO multinational battle group and local defense forces.