The United States and Estonia are strengthening their cooperation in research and technological development in the field of defense.

The U.S. Defense Department said an agreement to reinforce collaborative efforts was signed Wednesday by Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Europe and NATO, Jim Townsend, and Estonian Ambassador to the United States Eerik Marmei.

"The agreement facilitates collaborative efforts to enhance defense capabilities across a wide spectrum of activities, including basic and applied research, advanced technology development, advanced component and prototype development, system development and demonstration, and evolutionary acquisition and spiral development," Defense Department spokesperson Henrietta Levin said.

"It also permits the establishment of working groups and the transfer of equipment and material to improve collaboration and innovation."

"Estonia is renowned for its leadership in cyber-security, e-governance, and innovation," Levin said, "and is home to revolutionary communications companies and innovative defense-technology companies."

Additional details were not disclosed.

France to join air policing mission over Baltics
Paris (AFP) June 23, 2016 - France will deploy four Mirage 2000 fighter planes to the Baltic states in September for an air policing mission in line with NATO's initiative to boost defence in states bordering Russia, the French army announced Thursday.

"We are going to take part for the sixth time in the Baltic Air Policing mission," from September through December, army spokesman colonel Gilles Jaron said.

France is the second country to contribute to the air policing effort after Germany, the army added.

Air force spokesman colonel Olivier Celo said "this mission is intended to enforce respect for the air space of the three Baltic states" ---- Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia which joined NATO in 2004.

On previous missions, French planes made some 36 interceptions, with Russia having increased in the past few years its over flights by bombers in the region, considered an aggressive move near NATO countries, Celo said.

NATO announced last week that it would deploy four battalions to the Baltic nations and Poland to counter a more assertive Russia, ahead of a landmark summit in Warsaw on July 8-9.

All four countries were once ruled from Moscow and remain deeply suspicious of Russia's intentions, especially after Moscow's 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.

Russia bitterly opposes NATO's expansion into its Soviet-era satellites and last month said it would create three new divisions in its southwest region to meet what it described as a dangerous military build-up along its borders.