Russia Holds First Known Live-Fire Exercise on Lake Peipus Without Notifying Estonia

Russia conducted a live-fire military exercise on Lake Peipus, which forms part of the border with Estonia, without notifying Estonian authorities in advance. Estonian officials said it was the first known Russian weapons exercise on the lake.

Russia carried out the exercise on July 9, firing at a moving target on the water just a few kilometers from the Estonian border, according to Postimees on July 14.

Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur said the drill appeared to focus on countering maritime drones and described it as unprecedented for the area.

“This is certainly not routine. Russia has not previously conducted weapons exercises on Lake Peipus. In that sense, this is something new. They were firing at a moving target on the water.”

Although Estonia knows which Russian agency organized the exercise, Pevkur declined to identify it. He also suggested the drill reflected internal problems within Russia’s security structures rather than a deliberate escalation.

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Estonian Interior Minister Igor Taro said military activity near the border is inherently provocative.

“We have very clear rules on how to behave in the border zone and what may and may not be done there. Generally, military personnel do not simply show up near the border to conduct an exercise for no particular reason.”

According to Postimees, Russia did not notify Estonia about the exercise, but Estonian border authorities were aware of it through routine monitoring.

Lake Peipus, Europe’s fifth-largest lake, is divided by the Estonian-Russian border. The exercise follows a series of security incidents in the area, including reports of Russian surveillance balloons near the border and the appearance of an FSB border patrol vessel displaying a Wagner Group flag on the Narva River in 2025.

Earlier, around 1,500 British troops deployed to Estonia for Exercise Spring Storm, training with NATO allies less than 25 kilometers from Russia’s border. The drills featured Challenger 2 tanks and rehearsed the alliance’s response to a simulated cross-border incursion as part of NATO's Forward Land Force mission.

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