How Estonia became the front line in the new Cold War

An Estonian sniper team member engages targets on the Lethal Serpent lane of the U.S. Army Europe and Africa European Best Sniper Team Competition at the 7th Army Training in Germany, Nov. 21, 2025. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Randis Monroe)

By Floriana Bulfon • Jan 12, 2026

The new Iron Curtain is a digital wall running along the border between NATO-member countries and Russia. Historically, NATO defined the domains of its military operations as sea, land and air. Today, there are two new domains — space and cyberspace. Estonia, a small country bordering Russia with a population of less than 1.4 million, was, during the Cold War that divided East and West, a republic of the Soviet Union. Today, it is a member of NATO. It is also the front line in the new Cold War.

Dr. Mart Noorma is the director of NATO’s cybersecurity facility, located in Tallinn. He told New Lines that Estonia became the target of the first cyberattack by Russian intelligence in 2007, when the government decided to remove statues that had been erected during the communist era. “It was the first cyberattack sponsored by one nation against another,” Noorma said. To prevent future attacks, NATO established the Cooperative Cyber Defense Center of Excellence.

Russia’s digital offensive has increased exponentially since then. A series of increasingly close encounters in the sky, at sea and even on land is creating the very real risk of an open conflict. Kaupo Rosin, the director of Estonian intelligence, is certain that such a conflict will happen. Russia, he told New Lines, “Considers NATO an enemy, and they are building the potential for a future conflict.” The Kremlin’s goal is “To gain military control in the Baltic Sea area,” explained Rosin. He believes that Estonia will soon see a massive buildup of Russian troops on its border, just as Ukraine did before the full-scale invasion in 2022. There have been several very worrying incidents.