The Estonian general assessed that Vladimir Putin cannot be deterred by the possibility of using nuclear weapons or inflicting high casualties on his army. He added that in the event of a Russian attack on Estonia, “the country would be devastated if the Russians were not quickly repelled.”
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“When Russia attacks, we cannot wait; decisive victory must come quickly, within days or weeks,” warned Gen. Herem. “If we truly believe that an attack could occur in the coming years, we must take action now,” emphasized the commander of the Estonian army, arguing for the necessity of increasing spending on ammunition.
Estonia currently allocates 3.2% of its GDP to defense, making it one of the NATO member states that spends the highest percentage on this purpose.
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Over the next four years, Tallinn plans to allocate about one-fourth of its defense budget to purchasing ammunition. In 2023, the country acquired, among other things, the medium-range air defense system IRIS-T, cruise missiles, armored vehicles, self-propelled howitzers K9, and sea mines.
