Germany is ready to continue practical exercises to protect critical infrastructure in Estonia, the German military said on Monday, as the first such exercise, dubbed “Baltic Tiger”, is almost complete, Reuters reported.

Since October 3, German marines and airmen, together with soldiers from Estonia, Britain, Denmark and Belgium, have been training to guard airports such as the Aemari base, the port of Tallinn and other locations.

The German military said the drills were planned ahead of last month’s suspected sabotage of the Nord Stream pipeline, which carries Russian gas to Europe, prompting European countries to step up protection of their critical infrastructure.

German Navy Commander Jan Christian Kaak said he agreed with his Estonian counterpart that it made sense to continue the regular exercises, but a final decision had not yet been made.

His opinion was supported by the head of the German Air Force, Ingo Gerharts.

“Especially in these times, it is very important to demonstrate to Estonia, but also to the entire Baltics, that we are with them and that we are able, in case of a crisis, to strengthen our forces here in the shortest possible time. “, he told reporters.

Estonia has a coastline of 3,800 kilometers along the Baltic Sea and has more than 300 kilometers of border with Russia.

“Here at Emari Air Force Base, we’re only a 10-minute flight from the Russian border,” Gerhartz said.

“What good is our best and most advanced Eurofighter if the airport we operate from here in Emar is dangerous?” he added. The base houses five German Eurofighter fighters as part of the NATO mission to protect the airspace of the Baltic countries.

On October 11, NATO warned Moscow that it would respond to attacks on allies’ critical infrastructure with a “unified and decisive response.”

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also pledged to strengthen the defense of critical infrastructure, saying the alliance had already doubled its presence in the Baltic and North Seas to more than 30 ships, supported by aircraft and submarines.

Russia, which has been building pipelines with foreign partners, also says the damage was caused by sabotage, but pointed the finger at the United States and its allies.