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Russia Slams Estonian HIMARS Drill as “Obvious Provocation” in Baltic
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![Photo of Roman Kohanets]( "Photo of Roman Kohanets")
-111f0e5095e02c02446ffed57bfb0ab1.jpeg "Photo of Roman Kohanets")
On July 11, the Estonian Defense Forces conducted their first live-fire exercise with US-supplied HIMARS multiple-launch rocket systems off Saaremaa island, firing training rockets at simulated maritime targets up to 15 km offshore.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov branded the exercise “an obvious provocation,” warning that “Russia intends to firmly defend its legitimate interests in this region. Russia is a Baltic state. That many countries are carrying out provocative actions there is also an obvious reality”, as was reported by Radio Svoboda on July 14.
He further disclosed that these were Estonia’s first combat firings of HIMARS, asserting that thanks to the “aggressive policy” of Europe’s coastal states, the Baltic has become “a region where tension prevails”.
Estonia received six M142 HIMARS launchers in April 2025 under a US security assistance package designed to strengthen NATO’s eastern flank following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The systems, capable of engaging targets up to 300 km away, align Estonia’s capabilities with those of Lithuania—ordering eight launchers this year—and Latvia, which plans to field six launchers armed with ATACMS missiles by 2027.
Earlier, it was reported that the Baltic states agreed to fully disconnect from the Russian power grid by February 2025, bolstering regional energy security and reducing dependency on Moscow.
