Cybersecurity and defence news and analysis
The traditional DOS (denial-of-service) attack is a fairly simple concept to understand – bombarding a target server, perhaps that of a newspaper, bank or government agency, with a deluge of botnet traffic until it simply gives up the ghost. President Toomas Hendrik Ilves’s own nifty analogy (and my favourite) is that it is akin to hosting a birthday […]
Cybersecurity: 3DOS – the new breed of denial-of-service attacks Read More »
The Nordic and Baltic states are increasingly worried about Russia. Discussing NATO membership in Sweden is a bit like discussing sex at a church youth club. Everyone agrees the subject is important, but you have to tiptoe round some taboos. I have just been in Stockholm courtesy of the terrific Free World Forum, run by the
Cold War in the north Read More »
Estonian Minister of Defence, Urmas Reinsalu, has declined to comment on the dispute between Estonia and Lithuania in relation to NATO air policing mission’s periodic rotation. Currently, the mission is based in Lithuania, but Estonia would like to see it rotating between the two countries. Meanwhile, Juozas Olekas, Lithuanian defence minister, who wants the mission to stay in
Estonia and Lithuania disagree on rotating NATO air policing mission Read More »
Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania are preparing to take part in a large-scale international exercise, Saber Strike, to take place in early June. Saber Strike is a USAREUR (United States Army in Europe) led security cooperation exercise to take place in the Baltic States on June 3-14. It will involve approximately 2000 personnel from Estonia, Latvia,
Saber Strike 2013 to take place in early June Read More »
Estonian government will this year allocate 300 000 euros as a measure aimed at promoting the development of the domestic defence industry. “The competition for development support announced at the beginning of the year that is now in the phase of filing applications, is meant namely for entrepreneurs, to whom we will allocate up to
Estonia to support development of domestic defence industry with 300 thousand Euros Read More »
Secretary general of the Estonian Defence Ministry Mikk Marran and UN peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous signed a memorandum of intent in New York regarding Estonia’s participation in UN peacekeeping operations. According to the agreement signed at UN headquarters, Estonia will regularly inform the organisation of military observers and staff officers willing to serve in a
Estonia to increase contribution to UN peacekeeping operations Read More »
President Ilves today addressed the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Homeland Security in the UK House of Commons, upon the invitation of its treasurer, James Morris MP. The key theme of the President’s remarks was identity and, more specifically, who should be responsible for securing and guaranteeing it in society. He outlined the concepts of DDOS
President Ilves: “No such thing as a free app” Read More »
Every few years, the U.S. National Intelligence Council (NIC) publishes studies of how the world might evolve over the next two decades. Global Trends 2030: Alternative Worlds, released in December 2012, is the latest such iteration. Its four scenarios include one in which the United States turns inward and economic globalisation stagnates (“Stalled Engines”); one in
Forecasting the Baltics’ future security environment Read More »
Russia is poised to gain technical superiority over NATO in areas that are crucial to the defence of the Baltic states. Scandinavian defence pundits are a sober bunch. But the latest report by the Swedish Defence Research Agency is a gripping read. Its 115 pages offer the first comprehensive and unclassified look at Europe’s biggest
Edward Lucas: The Baltic states – defending the least defensible? Read More »
Iivi Anna Masso interviewed Carl Bildt for the Estonian magazine Diplomaatia when Bildt took part of Lennart Meri Conference this spring. Full version of the article can be found here. You wrote beautifully in your blog when President Ilves visited Sweden at the beginning of 2011 of how his parents had once come to Sweden as
Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt: “The future of democratic capitalism is bright” Read More »
