Exercise HEDGEHOG (SIIL) 25 saw 16,000 troops test Estonia’s defence strategy in one of the largest military exercises in the nation’s history.
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Estonia has hosted one of the largest military exercises in its history. Known as exercise HEDGEHOG 25 — or SIIL 2025 in Estonian — the operation saw 16,000 troops take part in a sweeping, multinational defence drill that spanned the entire country. It was a test of how Estonia and other NATO Allies would respond together in the face of a crisis.
Led by the Estonian Defence Forces, HEDGEHOG 25 focused on strengthening Estonia’s defence posture in close coordination with NATO Allies, particularly France and the United Kingdom. The exercise demonstrates the rapid deployment of Allied troops to Estonian territory and their seamless integration with local units.
Simultaneously, the combat readiness of Estonia’s reservists, the Estonian Defence League, and regular forces are put to the test. The troops face diverse, complex scenarios, from river-crossings to armoured manoeuvres, designed to sharpen decision-making, improve tactical coordination, and ensure operational standards are met across the board. Exercise HEDGEHOG ran from 05 to 23 May.
This NATO Multimedia footage, filmed 09 May and released this week, includes Estonian, French and UK soldiers, Challenger 2 tanks, Warrior fighting vehicles, Titan and Trojan armoured engineering vehicles, and soundbites from Lieutenant Colonel Grant Brown, Commander of 1 Mercian Battlegroup (Estonia) of the British Army.
Shot list:-
- 00:00 ~ British Army engineers move a bridge to the side of a river
- 00:10 ~ British Army engineers run through a smoke screen having laid the first bridge segment
- 00:15 ~ British Army engineers move a bridge into position over a river
- 00:30 ~ British Army soldiers cross the bridge and take cover
- 00:49 ~ Estonian soldiers traverse thick forest on quad-bikes
- 01:01 ~ Estonian soldiers carry a heavy gun into position
- 01:06 ~ Estonian soldiers camouflage their mounted gun position
- 01:14 ~ Estonian soldiers plan their defences on a map
- 01:28 ~ Estonian soldiers prepare a mounted machine gun
- 01:40 ~ Estonian soldiers fire a mounted machine gun as part of the exercise scenario
- 01:51 ~ Estonian soldiers load an anti-tank rocket launcher
- 02:01 ~ An Estonian soldier fires an anti-tank rocket launcher
- 02:02 ~ An Estonian patch sits above a patch supporting Ukraine on an Estonian soldier’s arm
- 02:08 ~ Estonian soldiers walk towards their defensive positions with heavy weaponry
- 02:18 ~ An Estonian drone squad fly reconnaissance drones
- 02:56 ~ An Estonian soldier retrieves a drone mid-air
- 03:05 ~ British Army warrior fighting vehicles arrive at the muster point
- 03:31 ~ British Army and Estonian soldiers meet at the muster point
- 03:39 ~ A British Army soldier maintains his rifle on top of a Challenger 2 tank
- 03:43 ~ British Army, French and Estonian soldiers are briefed on the plans for the exercise
- 04:01 ~ British Army, French and Estonian soldiers are briefed on exercise plans in front of convoys of armoured vehicles
- 04:15 ~ Hundreds of armoured vehicles wait at the muster point
- 05:00 ~ Soldier works away on top of a British Army Titan engineering vehicle
- 05:04 ~ A spotter staring out from inside the British Army Titan
- 05:16 ~ A British Army Titan lifts a large bridge vertically upright
- 05:29 ~ A British Army Titan deploys its bridge whilst on top of a bridge over a river
- 06:02 ~ A Trojan mine-clearing vehicle clears a simulated minefield
- 06:20 ~ A Trojan lifts and removes a concrete bollard from its path using a mechanical arm
- 06:32 ~ Warrior fighting vehicles drive through the path cleared by the Trojan
- 06:27 ~ An Estonian military vehicle drives through forest
- 06:56 ~ Soundbite: Lieutenant Colonel Grant Brown, 1 Mercian Battlegroup Commander of the British Army, NATO Multinational Battlegroup Estonia
- 07:18 ~ Soundbite: Lieutenant Colonel Grant Brown
- 07:30 ~ Soundbite: Lieutenant Colonel Grant Brown
- 07:50 ~ Soundbite: Lieutenant Colonel Grant Brown
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