After regaining indepence a major goal was to rapidly organize, train, and build a modern, western military. A few stumbles perhaps, but vast strides have been made, especially in training. Baltic soldiers participate in NATO excercises, peacekeeping assignments, international training competitions, and have yet to embarras themselves or their countrymen. Indeed, they have garnered respect and admiration from the international military community.
While acceptance into full NATO membership is so close that it is palpable, it behooves Balts to continue involvement in Western military excercises. The military’s role in peace time is vital. They have to be prepared for all kinds of civil emergencies - trained people power of considerable numbers is needed in combating natural disasters - floods particularily, because surging waters often destroy infrastructure, bring disease, ravage housing, disrupt traditional drinking water and food supplies, make transportation a challenge.
MEDCEUR 2002 took place from July 17th to 22.. The preparations for this excercise had been prodigious - it was, after all the largest crisis medical excercise ever to be held in Estonia. Some 25OO soldiers and civilians from the Baltics, and most importantly, the United States participated, approximately 1700 of them were military and civilian medics. Observers - critical for democratic excercises - were present from Germany, Sweden, Bulgaria, Macedonia and Russia. The scenario of the crisis was a flood situation - the aim to train medics in helping the civilian population. Operations took place in Paldiski, Tallinn, Tartu and areas . U.S. military personel were responsible for training Estonian medics. American involvement was even greater than that - U.S. Navy Seabees renovated the clinic in Paldiski, modernizing it and giving a new face to a vital local medical vital building left in disarray by the Soviet occupying army. As well, Estonian Army and U.S. Combat Engineer Marines conducted various joint excercises.
The U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Comfort needed the space that Paldiski provides. The ship serves as an afloat mobile acute surgery medical facility, providing assistance in war and peacetime situations world wide. At 890 feet long with an operating crew of 1276, Comfort is an imposing sight, and has proved her value many times, in among other operations, Desert Storm. The ship provides all care imaginable from x-ray and emergency surgery to dental care. The citizens of Paldiski were able to receive free eye care and dental services on board Comfort throughout the excercise. Hands-on training was provided to local medical professionals. Comfort and her crew were also integral in the mass casualty drill alongside Paldiski’s medical personel on July 27. There are situations that people need to be prepared for, that they can never imagine. Think of the heroics in Manhattan last fall, crisis operations that boggled the mind and took weeks to contend with. The Baltic republics can feel confident that not only did their military and medical personel receive training for a crisis of monumental proprotions - even more reassuring was the fact that it was the Americans supporting Estonians and local people in preparing for catastrophe.
The importance of the Baltic Sea strategically cannot be overlooked. The bombast of Russia after MEDCEUR 2002 ended must be taken in the context of a successful excercise (see sidebar). For many though, the most important issue beyond the succesful completion of this enormous joint training surpassed the provision of extraordinary medical aid to catastrophe victims. It was the feeling that Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania are, though small nations, members of a functioning military collective, that will do everything in their powers to provide valuable services to the international community in peacetime. Nobody ever wants to see warfare on the level of WW II, and with NATO being on our side, with us in NATO, with training provided by the world’s elites in peace the military can ensure that peace is maintained.