Why Estonia’s Future Matters to the US

It will be far easier and cheaper defending countries like Estonia and deterring Russian aggression than it would be liberating them.

Narva River flows between Estonia's Hermann Castle (L) and the Russia's Ivangorod Fortress (R). Aleksander Kaasik/Wikimedia, CC BY-SA

I recently stood on the Estonian-Russian border. It was freezing cold and snowing lightly. Looking south along the Narva River, I could see the Estonian city of Narva on the right and the Russian city of Ivangorod on the left.

I was standing on Freedom’s frontier. This river, maybe 100 yards across, is the dividing line between a free and democratic Europe and an oppressed and autocratic Russia. The two historical castles on each side served as a stark reminder of how contested this region has been for centuries.

Narva town hall, surrounded by Soviet-era apartment blocks, is one of the few buildings which were restored after World War II. Hannu, Public Domain