A British brigade was “destroyed” by Ukrainian forces in a Nato wargame in Estonia last year, it has emerged.
Hedgehog 2025, a wargame involving more than 16,000 troops from 12 Nato countries, simulated a battlefield “contested and congested” with a variety of drones, according to the head of Estonia’s unmanned systems unit.
During one scenario, a battle group consisting of thousands of troops, including a British brigade and an Estonian division, was defeated by Ukrainian forces in a “horrible” result for Nato.
The battle group was “just walking around, not using any kind of disguise, parking tents and armoured vehicles,” one participant, who played the enemy, told the Wall Street Journal. “It was all destroyed.”
Lt Col Arbo Probal, head of the unmanned systems program for the Estonian Defence Forces, said the aim of the exercise was designed to test soldiers’ ability to adapt under fire.
“The aim was really to create friction, the stress for units and the cognitive overload as soon as possible,” he said.
I’m not surprised tbh. Warfare has changed since 2022 and the UK military are undermanned, underfunded, and out of shape. Fighting Russian subversion and crippling DEI initiatives.
My background is 24 years in the British Army. Retired 6 years ago.
InQuintsWeTrust on
If I know anything about British people someone will blame DEI and immigrants for this
Edit: Somebody better pick up that phone because I FUCKING CALLED IT!
Salt_Woodpecker_6660 on
This is just for PR. The nato troops were “just walking around, not using any kind of disguise, parking tents and armored vehicles.”
Then_Style2029 on
Yet they’re getting push back on joining NATO smh.
SpiritedInflation835 on
You never make it easy in those exercises. You want to see when and how the troops break, get disorganized, and succumb to the chaos.
In contrast, Russian (and Soviet) military exercises were often scripted. When the troops arrived somewhere two hours early, they never set out to reconnoiter the area and prepare defensive outposts.
Because the exercise never included the possibility of a surprise attack…
Leftleaningdadbod on
I suspect the whole gameplay of every exercise is now including drones, counter-drone and hiding tactics. The warfare of the Ukraine invasion by Putin’s Russia has changed everything.
Reptilian_Brain_420 on
I’m not sure that there are many military units on the planet right now who can deal with the type of warfare going on in Ukraine right now. They are basically on the cutting edge of the future of warfare and have been doing it for years.
The rest of us will have a LOT of upgrading/changing to do if we intend to be competitive in future conflicts.
Strongest-There-Is on
The only people surprised by this result was and is the Russian army. 47:1 casualties now and they keep going.
StubbornPterodactyl on
It’s almost like the Ukranian armed forces have become the most battle-experienced army in Europe.
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**From The Telegraph:**
A British brigade was “destroyed” by Ukrainian forces in a Nato wargame in Estonia last year, it has emerged.
Hedgehog 2025, a wargame involving more than 16,000 troops from 12 Nato countries, simulated a battlefield “contested and congested” with a variety of drones, according to the head of Estonia’s unmanned systems unit.
During one scenario, a battle group consisting of thousands of troops, including a British brigade and an Estonian division, was defeated by Ukrainian forces in a “horrible” result for Nato.
The battle group was “just walking around, not using any kind of disguise, parking tents and armoured vehicles,” one participant, who played the enemy, told the Wall Street Journal. “It was all destroyed.”
Lt Col Arbo Probal, head of the unmanned systems program for the Estonian Defence Forces, said the aim of the exercise was designed to test soldiers’ ability to adapt under fire.
“The aim was really to create friction, the stress for units and the cognitive overload as soon as possible,” he said.
**Read more here:** [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/02/13/british-brigade-destroyed-by-ukraine-in-nato-wargame/?WT.mc_id=tmgoff_reddit_by-ukraine-in-nato-wargame/](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/02/13/british-brigade-destroyed-by-ukraine-in-nato-wargame/?WT.mc_id=tmgoff_reddit_by-ukraine-in-nato-wargame/)
I’m not surprised tbh. Warfare has changed since 2022 and the UK military are undermanned, underfunded, and out of shape. Fighting Russian subversion and crippling DEI initiatives.
My background is 24 years in the British Army. Retired 6 years ago.
If I know anything about British people someone will blame DEI and immigrants for this
Edit: Somebody better pick up that phone because I FUCKING CALLED IT!
This is just for PR. The nato troops were “just walking around, not using any kind of disguise, parking tents and armored vehicles.”
Yet they’re getting push back on joining NATO smh.
You never make it easy in those exercises. You want to see when and how the troops break, get disorganized, and succumb to the chaos.
In contrast, Russian (and Soviet) military exercises were often scripted. When the troops arrived somewhere two hours early, they never set out to reconnoiter the area and prepare defensive outposts.
Because the exercise never included the possibility of a surprise attack…
I suspect the whole gameplay of every exercise is now including drones, counter-drone and hiding tactics. The warfare of the Ukraine invasion by Putin’s Russia has changed everything.
I’m not sure that there are many military units on the planet right now who can deal with the type of warfare going on in Ukraine right now. They are basically on the cutting edge of the future of warfare and have been doing it for years.
The rest of us will have a LOT of upgrading/changing to do if we intend to be competitive in future conflicts.
The only people surprised by this result was and is the Russian army. 47:1 casualties now and they keep going.
It’s almost like the Ukranian armed forces have become the most battle-experienced army in Europe.