Estonian Chief of Defence Forces Lieutenant General Martin Herem met with SHAPE leadership and staff on 15 March 2021. During the visit the SHAPE Honour Guard welcomed Lieutenant General Herem before he held discussions with Supreme Allied Commander Europe General Tod D. Wolters, Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe General Tim Radford, Chief of Staff Admiral Joachim Rühle.
A NATO member since 2004, Estonian forces play a key role in the Alliance’s exercises, operations and leadership. The Allied nation is host to one of four NATO enhanced Forward Presence Battlegroups as well as the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre for Excellence in Tallinn. They have made troop contributions to NATO’s Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan and NATO Mission Iraq; while ACO’s highest ranking enlisted leader Command Senior Enlisted Leader (CSEL) is Command Sergeant Major Siim Saliste, of the Estonian of the Defence Forces.