Estonia preparing for border defence

Director of the Estonian Centre for Defence Investment Magnus-Valdemar Saar has stated that Estonia aims to procure weapons and equipment to strike invading forces before they reach its borders.

“With our current investments and the additional investments into defence, we actually look to attain the ability to do deep strikes into enemy territory and effective shaping operations,”  Caliber.Az reports, citing Saar's interview.

Following years of urging the White House for long-range ATACMS missiles, Ukraine, which received them in April, is now asking for permission to use them against targets deeper within Russia. The ATACMS have a range of 300 kilometres. Saar emphasised the lessons learned from the Ukraine conflict.

“We have learned from this conflict [in Ukraine] that you need to be able to conduct your shaping operations really effectively, meaning that you need to carry the effects deep to enemies,” he explained. 

He noted that at the operational level, such as brigades and divisions, “you cannot just have a close fight anymore” with anti-tank weapons alone.

“You need to carry the effects deeper. You need to start shaping”—referring to the need to neutralise enemy forces before they reach the front lines.

While Saar did not specify what this approach might involve, he indicated that the concept of “deep” can be somewhat subjective.

Estonia has announced plans to establish a loitering munitions unit, which, according to Saar, will achieve initial operating capability by the end of the year, utilizing drones with a range of approximately 100 kilometres.

The country has also secured a contract for Vulcano 155 guided munitions from Diehl and has purchased six High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) launchers along with Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) rockets.

HIMARS is also capable of firing ATACMS rockets. Saar mentioned that they are also contemplating the acquisition of new capabilities in intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance. 

“It's just not about the effectors that can fly, maybe, I don't know, 300 kilometres, like the ATACMS missile but also, you know, if you're striking that far, you need to know where the target is. You need to be quite precise,” he explained. 

He emphasised the need for Estonia to act more swiftly than NATO in strengthening its national defence. “This discussion, the [NATO Defense Planning] process, is rather lengthy, and this discussion—who will provide what forces for the plans—is also ongoing. So it will take some time to have clarity on those issues,” Saar noted. 

He characterised NDP discussions as “well-synched,” but added that the existence of a defensive alliance does not diminish the urgency for Estonia to acquire new weapons promptly. 

Additionally, the country may increase spending on anti-air defences, potentially including short-range man-portable missiles or longer-range interceptors. 

“As part of our next cycle for defence planning, up to year 2035, we will at least consider…we will at least go through the exercise, of looking at having something even longer range than the IRIS-T,” Saar stated. 

The IRIS-T, a German air defence system from Diehl, has a range of 40 kilometres and is already in Estonia's arsenal. He noted that such decisions would depend on affordability.

By Naila Huseynova