Riho Ühtegi


Riho Ühtegi is an Estonian brigadier general. He has been the Commander of the Estonian Special Operations Force. Since 2019, he is the commander of the Estonian Defence League.

Military career

Ühtegi is a member of the Estonian Defence League since 1990. and is one of the establishers of , which was the first unit in Tartu malev. During 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt he participated in the defence of Toompea with men from Tartu malev. In 1993, during Pullapää crisis, he was tasked with creating a new unit based on the Lääne Country Volunteer Jaeger Company. He replaced Toivo Treima as chief of J2 department of the Estonian Defence Forces on 6 April 1995, after a border incident involving an officer from the department. On 26 February 2007, he was released from the position of Commander of the Military Intelligence Battalion due to a scandal over illegal tracking. He was given the rank of Lieutenant colonel on 14 October 2010 and the rank of Colonel on 22 February 2016. In 2016, he was involved in a helicopter accident, but escaped largely unharmed.
Ühtegi was approved for the position of Commander of the Defence League by the Estonian Government on June 13, 2019, eventually taking up the position on July 19. On August 20, he received the rank of Brigadier general.
Riho Ühtegi is married and has two children. After serving in the Soviet Army, he worked as a telescope mechanic at Tartu Observatory and later as a policeman, during which he joined the Estonian Defence League. His hobbies are sports, which he practices to keep in shape, and teaching subjects about national defence. Many teachers have attended his lectures. He has participated in the translation of by Abram Shulsky and Gary Schmitt.

Decorations