Navy, allies searching for munitions from past wars in Estonian waters

TALLINN – A ten-day mine clearance operation, called ESTHOD, began in Estonian waters on Monday, as part of which the Estonian Navy, together with the Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 1 (SNMCMG1), will search for, identify, and neutralize munitions from the past wars in Pärnu Bay and the southern part of the Väinameri Sea.

Altogether seven vessels are participating in the mine countermeasures operation, including the Estonian minehunter Sakala, the German HQ vessel  Werra and minehunter Weilheim, the Lithuanian minehunter LVS Skalvis, the Belgian minehunter Lobelia, the Dutch minehunter Willemstad, and the French minehunter Croix du Sud.

"Mine countermeasures operations in Estonian waters provide a good opportunity for the ship crews to practice procedures, from analyzing the operational area to locating and blowing up mines. Since historical minefields allow full-scale mine countermeasures training, mine clearance operations in the Baltic Sea and Estonia are highly valued among our allies," said the deputy commander of the Estonian Navy, Navy Capt. Johan-Elias Seljamaa.

Seljamaa added that in the course of operations like this, in addition to making Estonia's maritime areas safer, allies can also familiarize themselves with the specifics of the local aquatic environment, which will support the conduct of similar operations in the future in times of peace or crisis.

On Saturday, the French and Lithuanian minehunters participating in the operation will berth in the port of Pärnu to allow on board anyone interested in taking a closer look at the allied ships. On the day of the port call, the minehunters will be open to visitors from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Estonia has been part of the SNMCMG1 since 2005, and has a minehunter assigned to the group every year. Estonia's last rotation in the mine countermeasures group ended in the summer of this year, and the next one will begin at the beginning of next year.

One of the four groups of vessels under NATO's Allied Maritime Command, SNMCMG1 is a mine countermeasures (MCM) readiness unit tasked with being a primary rapid reaction force. The group consists mainly of ships of allied nations with MCM capability and participates in training exercises of various countries.