News
22.10.2021|Ministry of Defence
New and comprehensive defence plan endorsed at NATO Defence Ministers’ Meeting
Minister of Defence Kalle Laanet took part in the NATO Defence Ministers’ meeting, in Brussels, where NATO’s deterrence and defence capabilities, the situation in Afghanistan, NATO’s nuclear deterrence, and joint cooperation between NATO and the European Union were discussed over the course of four...
20.10.2021|Ministry of Defence
Salm: The contribution of the United States to the security of the Baltic Republics is unwavering
During his visit to the United States, Kusti Salm, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Defence, met in Washington with Mara Karlin, Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy at the Department of Defense; Jessica Lewis, Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs; National...
15.10.2021|Ministry of Defence
Permanent Secretary Kusti Salm discussed in Singapore cooperation in the field of the reserve army system and new technologies
Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Defence Kusti Salm spoke as part of the opening panel of the Singapore Defence Technology Summit, and also participated in bilateral meetings where possibilities for developing co-operation between Estonia and Singapore in the field of cyber defence and...
05.10.2021|Ministry of Defence
Laanet at the Warsaw Security Forum: the credibility of deterrence is ensured by real defence capabilities
Minister of Defence Kalle Laanet was on a two-day visit to Poland, where he spoke at the Warsaw Security Forum as part of a panel discussion on the threat and deterrence of Russia. During the visit, Laanet met with the Minister of Defence of Poland, Mariusz Błaszczak, and the Minister of Defence of...
23.09.2021|Ministry of Defence
Minister of Defence Laanet: National defence a government priority, defence budget set to increase by a record EUR 103 million
According to Minister of Defence of Estonia, Kalle Laanet, defence expenditures in the 2022 state budget agreed upon in the government is set to increase to EUR 748 million, which is 2.31% of the forecasted GDP. It includes costs associated with Allies, a defence investment programme, and new...
16.09.2021|Ministry of Defence
Salm: The Joint Expeditionary Force has the capability to act quickly in a conflict situation
In London, at the Permanent Secretaries’ meeting of the Joint Expeditionary Force, Permanent Secretary of the Estonian Ministry of Defence Kusti Salm said that the coalition has an important role to play in our region and that cooperation is moving in the right direction.
‘The focus is on the...
14.09.2021|Ministry of Defence
Laanet: Russia’s large-scale training exercise Zapad 2021 is a provocation against the West
Foreign Affairs and Defence Ministers from the Baltic Republics and Poland met in Riga to discuss the security situation in the Baltic Sea region and matters of topical interest concerning NATO’s collective defence. According to Minister of Defence Kalle Laanet, the best way to ensure our security...
11.09.2021|Ministry of Defence
Minister of Defence of Estonia, Kalle Laanet: Russia’s Zapad 2021 escalates the highly tense international security situation
The drawdown of American and other Allied troops from Afghanistan was initially intended to be finished not later than September 11, the 20th anniversary of the hideous attack by al-Qaeda against the US that marked the beginning of the so-called global war on terrorism. That is also the second day...
03.09.2021|Ministry of Defence
UK, French Troops in Tapa Receive Mission Medals
Permanent Secretary of the Estonian Ministry of Defense, Kusti Salm, yesterday presented medals to the troops of the UK-led NATO enhanced Forward Presence Battlegroup in Tapa, which will complete its deployment in Estonia later this month.
"The British and French contingents together with the 1st...
02.09.2021|Ministry of Defence
Laanet: Lukashenka’s regime is targeting the entire European Union
Defence Ministers of Estonia, Kalle Laanet, Latvia, Artis Pabriks, Lithuania, Arvydas Anušauskas and Vice-Minister of National Defense of Poland Marcin Ociepa affirmed a shared understanding that the ongoing developments on the Belarusian border are a systematically planned and organized hybrid...