What is new about the development plan presented on Wednesday? Given the previous plan was set for 2028 and much has already been achieved, at first glance, it may seem that the content was already there, just higher figures were added.

The whole story is actually quite the reverse. If we look at the fact that about a billion more per year is now going into national defense compared with before, then we are paying a great deal of attention to the same innovation as mentioned by [former EDF commander] General Herem. The new weapons systems we are acquiring. We are already entering procurement for ballistic air defenses – deep strike capabilities, cruise missiles, none of which we've ever had before. A lot of different weapon systems, and across all branches of the armed forces. What the previous plans lacked significantly were durability and engineering capabilities; these are the topics we've brought very much into focus.

A deemphasis on automation stands out – there are no land drones or sea drones?

They are there, but of course, we cannot cover the entire plan in a press conference lasting but a few dozen minutes. As the name of the Command for Innovation and Future Capabilities itself implies, we are indeed paying plenty of attention to future capabilities: Automation, of course, artificial intelligence, and everything that comes with innovation. For example, we have already been trialing sea drones, while the navy has tested a sea drone produced in Estonia. All of these are work in progress.

Do we already know how much borrowing will be needed?

That is hard to say. Finance would certainly be people better suited to answer that. If we look, for instance, at the Security Action for Europe (SAFE) mechanism, where the European Commission offers loans to countries on fairly good terms, in this case, we have submitted our plan to the Ministry of Finance. It might end up that we'll be asking for from Europe for somewhere between three and four billion [euros].

Can Estonian firms also take part in implementing this plan?

They very much can. First, of course, we are supporting Estonian industry. The same nearly €50 million we're investing in innovation and development via various grants will directly help Estonian industries get ahead. Second, aid to Ukraine. We continue to procure from Estonian producers. Third, I already mentioned domestically made cruise missiles, but there's also much more, such as mine production. If we look at the defense industry park, there is one Estonian provider there who wants to start producing mines – so Estonia's domestic defense industry is getting a lot of support from this development plan as well.

How could domestic pricing be made cheaper, since otherwise we will still be buying expensive Western equipment?

That's exactly the point, that Estonia's own defense industry must develop quickly and be competitive. In fact, we've already been seeing that Estonian defense companies are carrying out a lot of cooperation with Ukraine's defense industry, and many of the developments in Estonia's defense industry are being done together with Ukrainians. This gives us a guarantee and assurance that, first, we're getting battlefield-tested products, and, second, we're getting them at very good prices. Of course, we will still have to buy large systems – combat vehicles aren't something we can make at home, nor is medium-range air defense, but we are producing drones, robotics, artificial intelligence, automated systems, unmanned systems at home. These are the things we can buy domestically.

The ministry's newly announced national defense plan for 2026–2029 focuses on building multi-layered air defense, deep-strike capabilities, and enhanced situational awareness, and comes with a total budget of over €10 billion across the four years. Firepower ranges are set to extend beyond 300 km, thanks to systems like HIMARS, and a dedicated brigade is to be formed. The volunteer Defense League (Kaitseliit) will get a €75 million boost in funding, while €5 billion is earmarked for ammunition investment.

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