Defense minister discusses Baltic defense with Canadian colleague
Minister of Defense Hanno Pevkur and Commander of the Estonian Defense Forces, Maj. Gen. Andrus Merilo met with Canadian Minister of National Defense Bill Blair and Chief of the Defense Staff Lt. Gen. Jennie Carignan at the Halifax Security Forum. The discussions focused on defense cooperation in the Baltic region, military aid to Ukraine and increasing defense spending among allied nations.
"Canada serves as the framework nation for the NATO battlegroup stationed in Latvia, but cooperation extends more broadly across the Baltic states. For example, Canadian military personnel participate in several exercises held in Estonia and the wider Baltic region. Since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine, Canada's Cyber Command has been actively supporting Ukraine in the field of cyberdefense. Estonia and Canada's cyber commands also enjoy excellent cooperation. Additionally, Canada is in the process of joining the IT coalition established to aid Ukraine," said Minister of Defense Hanno Pevkur (Reform).
During the meeting, Pevkur emphasized that, alongside Estonia's contributions, it is essential to enhance capabilities that provide added value across nations in cooperation with framework countries. "This includes developing intelligence, analysis and targeting capabilities, as well as deep strike capabilities and joint exercises, all of which are areas where our collaboration with Canada can be further strengthened," Pevkur added.
The defense minister also participated in a discussion on Ukraine's victory and held meetings on the sidelines of the forum with Adm. Rob Bauer, chair of the NATO Military Committee; German Deputy Foreign Minister Tobias Lindner and U.S. Senator Mike Rounds.
In addition, Pevkur met with Professor Deeph Chana, director of NATO's Defense Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA). Their discussion focused on the role of innovation accelerators in developing groundbreaking technologies that bolster the alliance's defense capabilities.
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Editor: Aleksander Krjukov, Marcus Turovski