Jägala Army Base is a former military base of the

Estonian Defence Forces The Estonian Defence Forces () is the unified military force of the Republic of Estonia. The Estonian Defence Forces consists of the Estonian Land Forces, the Estonian Navy, the Estonian Air Force, and the paramilitary Estonian Defence Leagu ...

in Jägala village in

Jõelähtme Parish Jõelähtme Parish () is a municipality in Estonia. It was established in 1992 and is administratively part of the Harju County, in northwestern Estonia. The parish has a population of 6,969 and an area of , the population density is The admini ...

Harju County Harju County ( or ''Harjumaa''), is one of the fifteen counties of Estonia. It is situated in northern Estonia, on the southern coast of the Gulf of Finland, and borders Lääne-Viru County to the east, Järva County to the southeast, Rapla Count ...

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

. The base is located about 25 kilometres to the east of

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

History

During the Soviet era, the location was a former

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

military base. Members of the

Kalev Infantry Battalion The Kalev Infantry Battalion () is an infantry battalion of the Estonian Land Forces. It is a part of the 1st Infantry Brigade (Estonia), 1st Infantry Brigade and its primary task is to train conscription-based mechanized infantry units. The batt ...

took over the base from Soviet forces in 1992, shortly after Estonia gained independence, making it the first military base to be peacefully taken over. Former officers were given three days to leave and take their clothing and food with them. Between 1992 and 2002 this was used as an Estonia Kalevi Infantry Battalion base. After disbandment of this unit there were some Defence League units, but the area was rarely used. Some reserve refreshment courses took part in Jägala.

Plans

There was insufficient space to develop Tallinn garrison military units. The barracks and other structures required renovations. Training and shooting ranges are situated outside of the city. A decision was therefore made to relocate Guard, Logistics and other

battalions A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of up to one thousand soldiers. A battalion is commanded by a lieutenant colonel and subdivided into several Company (military unit), companies, each typically commanded by a Major (rank), ...

from the city. The first plan which included development of

Männiku training area Männiku training area is one of the six military training fields used by the Estonian Defence Forces. It is located just outside the capital of Estonia, Tallinn, in Saku Parish. Most of its territory of is within the borders of the village of ...

was postponed in 2006. After this a search was made to find a new area for Tallinn garrison units. Jägala met the requirements and was selected. The ''Eesti Vabariigi Kaitseministeerium'' (Ministry of Defence) made a decision to build a new army base for Guard, Intelligence, Logistics and Staff and Signal Battalions. The Military Police and Northern Defence Command HQ would occupy old barracks of the Guard Battalion in Rahumäe. Construction of Jägala army base and renovation of

Ämari Air base Ämari Air Base is a military airbase in Harjumaa, Estonia, located south of Lake Klooga and southwest of Tallinn. The base was opened in 1945. History Ämari Air Base was built between 1940–1952 under an agreement signed by the Estonia ...

is the largest infrastructure projects in 2008–2018 Estonian army development plan. Investments in Jägala base project are expected not less than 96 mn. EURO. The Ground forces plan to complete bases in Jägala, Tapa Army Base, Paldiski, Jõhvi and Võru according to the mentioned plan. What is more Central Training Area is not far from here.

Criticism

Most part of the Guard Battalion ceremonial and other duties take part in the capital of Estonia. One more disadvantage is concentration of forces, equipment and materials. About one quarter of regular Estonian armed forces would be here.

Demolishing

Jägala army base was demolished in 2013 due to a lack of modernisation and the presence of potentially hazardous buildings. It was conducted by the order of the defence minister

Urmas Reinsalu Urmas Reinsalu (; born 22 June 1975) is an Estonian politician who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2022 to 2023 and previously from 2019 to 2021. Before that, Urmas has served as the Minister of Defence between 2012 and 2014, and Mi ...

and the chancellor, infrastructure department and defence force were informed. As per law, the local council should have given their approval, but this was not applied for before demolishing could start. This was cleared on a later date, but most of the base had been already demolished at the time.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jagala Army Base Jõelähtme Parish Military installations of Estonia Buildings and structures in Harju County Military facilities of the Soviet Union in Estonia

History

Plans

Criticism

Demolishing

See also

References