Border construction started in 2020 and is expected to be completed in 2025. It will cover 115 km of the Estonian-Russian border. The construction costs are around €156 million.

Additionally, the government allocated €2.7 million for border infrastructure and €12.5 million for developing drone capabilities.

"As of today, we have reached a stage where construction work on a significant portion of the land border, about 60 kilometers, has been completed, while work on the remaining land border is ongoing," said Merle Tikk, project manager for the construction of the eastern border at the Police and Border Guard Board (PPA).

Tikk said active construction is currently underway on one section of the border.

"This is a roughly 26-kilometer section where access roads, patrol paths, fencing, and surveillance positions are being built. We hope that construction on another land border section can also continue soon, as the contractor handed over the first phase of work at the end of November," she said.

The PPA hopes to sign a contract soon to proceed with the second phase of work in spring, which will involve constructing patrol paths and additional access roads, with the fence already in place.

Supporting infrastructure for the installation of video and surveillance equipment will also be developed in this section.

While neighboring countries have introduced special regulations to accelerate border construction, in Estonia, the work is proceeding according to legal requirements, added Tikk.

"We are strictly following public procurement laws without applying exceptions, exactly as the law prescribes. This simply takes time. Another reason for the time required is that we are building the infrastructure in a very comprehensive manner, taking all needs into account and doing everything at once," Tikk explained.

Estonia's eastern border totals 338.6 kilometers, of which 135 km is located on land in difficult terrain and forested area, 76 km is in the Narva River, and 127 km runs through Lake Peipsi.

A large part of the Estonian-Russian control line is a "green border", defined as weakly protected sections of the national border usually covered with vegetation, such as forests. 

Last December, construction of the second section, a 40-kilometer stretch in the southeast of the country, was completed. The first section was finished in 2022.

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