Defense League Leaders: Crisis Means More Than War – Estonian People Must Be Prepared

Defense League Commander Major General Ilmar Tamm and Women's Home Defense Chairwoman Airi Tooming discussed broader crisis preparedness. According to them, people need to be prepared for various crises, not just war. They also emphasized the importance of not abandoning Estonia in difficult times.

Defense League Commander Major General Ilmar Tamm and Women's Home Defense Chairwoman Airi Tooming emphasized in a recent interview that crisis preparedness means much more than simply preparing for war. Estonian citizens should be ready to respond to any large-scale crises that might strike the country for very different reasons.

Tamm and Tooming stressed that the Defense League and Women's Home Defense do not only deal with national defense in a narrow sense. The organizations are ready to contribute to broader societal crisis management – whether it is a large-scale power outage, a natural disaster, or another emergency situation that requires coordinated action.

Sense of Duty and Connection to Home

One of the central themes in the interview was the question of what motivates Defense League and Women's Home Defense members to voluntarily contribute. Airi Tooming highlighted that people are united first and foremost by a desire to be useful and to feel part of something greater. She said that collective action provides a sense of security and strengthens community ties.

Major General Tamm added that the core of crisis preparedness is attitude – a person must feel responsibility toward their country and fellow citizens. "It cannot be the case that if the situation becomes difficult in Estonia, people board the first train out," said Tamm, referring to the fact that in a real crisis, fleeing does not help, but cooperation and resilience do.

Every Citizen Can Contribute

Both leaders emphasized that crisis preparedness is not only the concern of military personnel or members of volunteer organizations. Every person can make simple preparations: keep food and water in reserve at home, know the situation of their neighbors, and be aware of where to turn in a crisis. Such basic preparedness makes society as a whole stronger.

Tooming and Tamm are convinced that Estonian society has made a significant leap in crisis awareness in recent years, but there is still much work to be done. The organizations plan to continue contributing to raising awareness and strengthening community networks across the country.