Patrik Maldre describes the crucial days of 1918 when the Estonia-UK alliance was born.* On 24 February 1919, the Republic of Estonia celebrated its first Independence Day with nearly full control of the nation’s historical homeland. And yet, only a short two months before that, the Red Army had been camped 34 kilometres (21 miles) […]
The United Kingdom and Estonia’s achievement of independence Read More »
Patrik Maldre, a cyber security expert, takes a look at the Estonian government’s recently published report, “Cyber Security in Estonia” and states that Estonia continues to take substantial strides in the cyber security field both domestically and internationally. For more than a decade, Estonia has been focused on cyber security as a national priority. It
Patrik Maldre: The state of Estonia’s cyber security Read More »
As an Estonian expat who first moved abroad at the age of 6 but who returned to Estonia to complete my ajateenistus (military service), I have just one message for those, both here in Estonia and abroad that are considering it now: it is absolutely worth it.* As a small nation in a strategically significant
Military service in Estonia is worth it Read More »
Estonia’s political leaders are now choosing the country’s new head of state. The next president can, and should, build on his or her predecessor’s legacy to firmly establish Estonia as a global leader in the practical and political dimensions of cyber security. President Toomas Hendrik Ilves’s ten years of leadership is coming to an end.
In June 2014, NATO took a major step forward in the field of cyber defence, announcing that the defence ministers of member states had agreed to adopt an enhanced NATO cyber defence policy (the previous one was adopted in 2011). The policy improves NATO activity in the critical areas of information sharing, mutual assistance, training
Estonia’s role in NATO’s growing cyber capability Read More »
The multi-week denial-of-service attacks in 2007 catapulted Estonia to worldwide attention in the field of cyber security. Since then, criminals, hacktivists, soldiers and spies from near and far have continued to maintain an interest in undermining Estonia’s networked society. Yet they have had no such luck. Every year, Estonia’s flagship agency responsible for cyber security
Staying ahead of the threats: Estonia’s cyber security in 2015 Read More »
Estonia is once again near top of the chart when it comes to internet freedom. Freedom House’s ‘Freedom on the Net 2015’, which is the most authoritative report in the field, ranked Estonia as second in the world for the third year in a row, just behind Iceland once again. The Freedom House report investigated
Estonia as a flag-bearer of global internet freedom Read More »
In Estonia, a small but quickly growing group of high-tech defence companies are finding paths to international success. In fact, most countries that take national security and economic growth seriously are host to companies dedicated to the defence sector. This industry generates high-level, specialised, often engineering or IT-related jobs, provides a smooth outlet for military
Estonia’s high-tech defence industry is coming of age Read More »
26 November is celebrated in Estonia as Citizen’s Day. It commemorates the date of the signing into effect of the first Estonian citizenship law in 1918, and honours all Estonian citizens as well as those who are aspiring to become citizens, regardless of ethnicity. It is also a day that encourages reflection on the relationship
Patrik Maldre: Citizen’s Day – social cohesion is key for national security Read More »
Last week’s NATO summit in Newport, Wales, featured the largest gathering of world leaders in the history of the United Kingdom, and not without good reason. Transatlantic security is being challenged around its perimeter by brutal civil wars and undeclared stealth invasions, by resurgent state adversaries as well as nascent non-state groupings. The time was
Reflections on the Wales summit and the making of future NATO Read More »
