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Estonia to reinforce defense on ground, in air, at sea in response to Russia’s actions

The country will increase its defense budget for 2023-2024 for almost 3%

STOCKHOLM, September 2. /TASS/. Estonia, together with other Baltic states, will reinforce its defense on the ground, in the air and at sea in response to Russia’s actions in Ukraine, Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur said during a press conference in Gotland Friday.

According to Pevkur, Baltic states intend to reinforce their cooperation in order to respond to a "threat" to the region, allegedly posed by Russia.

"This cooperation will definitely be strengthened. […] All our countries, especially Estonia will give new focus to new capabilities. We will strengthen our coastal defense, we will strengthen our air defense; we will strengthen sea defense. We will acquire a lot of new capacities, we will acquire a lot new systems for our defense," the Minister said.

Estonia will increase its defense budget for 2023-2024 for almost 3%, Pevkur added. According to the Minister, this is a "clear answer" to Russia’s actions in Ukraine.

The Minister spoke at a press conference of Defense Ministers of Baltic and Northern European states, which took place in Sweden’s Gotland Friday. The press conference was livestreamed on YouTube by the government of Sweden.

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