Estonia will allocate €17 million to strengthen its border with Russia and implement AI
The Estonian government has approved additional funding of 17 million euros to strengthen the border with Russia, specifically for the modernization of surveillance systems and the implementation of artificial intelligence technologies.
This was reported by the Estonian government’s press service.
The funds will be used to continue the construction of engineering fortifications, upgrade border guards’ technical equipment, and strengthen control along the European Union’s eastern border.
Estonian Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi stated that the government is cutting spending in other areas to increase security funding. According to him, this will allow for accelerating work on the border and installing modern surveillance systems.
Estonian Interior Minister Igor Taro noted that the additional resources should help complete the construction of the fortifications by 2027.
Earlier, Estonia ordered additional HIMARS systems from the U.S. and may receive them as early as 2027—sooner than planned. At the same time, the country is developing its own defense infrastructure in collaboration with the American company Lockheed Martin. As a result, Tallinn is building a more flexible and long-range missile arsenal.
The Estonian Ministry of Defense wants to simplify the procedures for procuring and using drones in the military. To this end, it has prepared amendments to aviation regulations designed to make the process faster and more flexible. The government explains this by noting that drones are rapidly changing modern warfare, and regulations must keep pace.
