Local defense industry companies are eagerly awaiting amendments to the Weapons Act, which would help bring to Estonia production currently pursued abroad.

"Today, we don't handle weapon systems, only superstructures like surveillance solutions, radars and various robotic arms for clearing roadblocks. But the future also entails integrating weapon systems on location and sending them directly to the end customer, different defense structures," said Milrem's CFO Mikk Mägi.

The defense sector aims to send as many Estonian products to Ukraine as possible, as in the near future, the global market will primarily demand weapons and equipment that have been used and recommended by Ukrainians.

Drones are widely used in Ukraine. While Milrem does not yet plan to move into drone production, Go Craft has started working on drone payloads. The product is essentially ready, except for the explosive loading, due to the lack of a facility for handling explosives. Establishing such a safety zone would also enable the production of ammunition.

"To help Ukraine, I would say that as much explosive and offensive ammunition as possible should be supplied there. Unfortunately, ATVs and SUVs alone won't help them much anymore," noted Go Craft CEO Tormis Saar.

Product development could also be bolstered by creating a defense industry park, where companies could be established alongside Estonian firms.

"This is actually a broader ecosystem, which means that it must be possible to quickly develop a company here, bring in people with the necessary knowledge and competencies and have the capacity to work with weapon systems and explosives. It needs to be organized in such a way that private companies can do this," said Taavi Veskimägi, chairman of the Estonian Defense and Aerospace Industry Union.

Talks about establishing a defense industry park have been ongoing for some time, but production is unlikely to begin there before 2026. According to Minister of Defense Hanno Pevkur (Reform), there has been no delay; it's necessary to follow current laws and wait for the environmental impact assessment. Pevkur doesn't believe that Estonian defense industry companies will fall behind others because of this.

"The Czech Republic has a planned explosives plant, but it hasn't made much progress. The Lithuanians and Latvians have talked about their plans, but we don't see construction starting anywhere. So, in reality, we are all more or less on the same starting line," the minister said.

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