Estonia to 'man its border' with drones
The Ministry of Interior Affairs has allocated close to half a million euros for the purchase of drones to monitor Estonian eastern border.
The drones will help border guards discover and record illegal border crossings and other criminal activities at the Estonian-Russian border.
The material recorded by the drones can be used as evidence in criminal cases – illegal and accidental border crossings, trafficking in goods and people, or any other type of cross-border crime.
“Our external border is hard for border guards to access on foot. This is where unmanned flying vehicles (UAVs), or drones, come handy,” Minister of Internal Affairs Hanno Pevkur said. “Drones will offer us a better real-time overview and allow crimes to be discovered faster,” he added.
The money coming from the internal security fund amounts to 333,337.50 euros. The rest of the money needed for the purchase will be the own funding by the Estonian Police and Border Guard Board and co-funding by the state.
Editor: M. Oll