The minister made his remarks speaking to "Välisilm" on Monday, commenting on how much of the €1.6 billion earmarked for defense funding has been spent so far.

"I can confirm that all of this €1.6 billion; even more — we have launched a €400 million procurement for loitering munitions — is subject to procurement, and orders and will reach Estonia as quickly as possible," he said.

"Our interest is that it arrives in Estonia quickly, and not an accounting-related technical concern about whether a particular contract has been signed or not. Sometimes negotiations take a little longer to ensure faster delivery," Pevkur went on.

The €1.6 billion in ammunition funding is in addition to previously made defense decisions; an approximately equal amount of procured ammunition is already either in Estonia or about to arrive, Pevkur added.

"I don't see this as €1.6 billion, but as more than €4 billion. This is what we have in procurement plans, and that is what we have acquired," he continued.

"Of this over €4 billion — since the full-scale war in Ukraine began — €800 million is already here, and €700 million is to arrive this year, meaning that by the end of this year, there will be €1.5 billion worth of ammunition in Estonia. Last year, for instance, we received 100 truckloads of ammunition, which make for very large quantities."

"This €1.6 billion is an addition to the plans we are already implementing. And this addition was based on the desires and recommendations of the commander of defense. When this decision was made last September, the Center for Defense Investment (RKIK) immediately started procuring various types of ammunition. For many of these, amounting to a billion euros, we specifically partnered with international allies to secure better conditions, prices, and faster delivery. This is all work in progress," the minister added.

Given the changing priorities with the new U.S. administration, alternative solutions are also being considered for under-order material, such as the U.S.-made M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS).

However, Pevkur stressed that it is crucial for Estonia to maintain a strong defense policy relationship with the U.S.

"Alternatives are in progress. We have mapped them out, and all the preparatory work has been done," Pevkur said.

"But before we switch to any alternative, we must grasp that in addition to procuring ammunition from a further away country, we also have a very strong defense policy relationship with the U.S."

"U.S. soldiers are here, and the U.S. remains NATO's strongest military force. Naturally, we are ensuring that delivery terms are suitable for us, but above all, our interest is to maintain a very strong defense policy connection with the U.S.," Pevkur said.

The minister stressed this does not mean Estonia fears conflict with the U.S.

He said, "We fear nothing. We will defend Estonia by all possible means. Our interest is that the Estonian Defense Forces get all the necessary resources. The U.S., as everyone knows, is a very strong military power, but of course, our interest — not out of fear, but out of necessity — is that the U.S. remains committed to the defense of Estonia and of all of Europe."

Countries participating in joint procurement with Estonia also understand the urgency of the situation, he said, including key eastern flank nation Poland.

"Poland understands this very well — Poland's defense spending is moving towards 6 percent. France also understands this very well. I do not doubt our allies in the slightest. France is one of our strongest allies. We agreed with France on an ultra-fast procurement for Caesar howitzers, then in about half a year, we had the Caesar howitzers here. For this reason, we entered a government-to-government agreement with France," Pevkur continued.

"The same applies to ammunition — France is the producer of our existing [short-range air-defense] Mistral system, and of course, we had a strong interest in increasing our Mistral stocks. It was great to see that, in addition to Estonia and France, three more countries joined in with this effort," Pevkur concluded, noting that no party is delaying the necessary orders.

Over the weekend, Secretary General of the Ministry of Defense Kusti Salm strongly criticized Minister Pevkur by saying that not a single cent of the €1.6 billion earmarked for ammunition funding had yet been spent. This followed similar criticism from Isamaa chair Urmas Reinsalu made Saturday.

Senior Estonian defense officials have denied the slow procurement claims, highlighting that the €1.6 billion allocated for ammunition is itemized as: €675 million for long-range munitions, €625 million for short-range air defense, and €300 million for medium-range systems.

Contracts are set for completion this year for deliveries by 2028.

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