Estonia’s Security: A Case Study of Internal and External Perceptions

Abstract: Estonia is facing a challenging security situation, given the broad spectrum of threats and its historical and geopolitical ties to Russia. With that in mind, this qualitative case study aims at providing an overview of Estonia’s security by establishing the similarities and differences between internal and external perceptions and applying role theory to the findings. The empirical data, gathered through elite interviews with Estonia’s prime minister and defence minister, as well as officials and experts from the Baltic Sea region, mainly indicate that threats to Estonia’s security come from Russia and are played out on various arenas, all combined in the concept of hybrid threats. Furthermore, the Russian-speaking minorities and the aging population are additional threats, perceived externally. Moreover, Estonia’s own defence forces are perceived as very professional, but small in size, as is the country’s economic and diplomatic capacity. Consequently, Estonia’s security derives directly from NATO and the EU, which can also compensate for capacity shortcomings. Accordingly, Estonia is perceived as a very committed ally to its partners, embodying multiple roles in the region, among others, the leadership role in the cyber domain.