Estonia has signed an agreement with the European Commission on up to EUR 2.34bn in long-term loans for defence investments through the EU’s Security Action for Europe (SAFE) programme, ERR reports. Under the agreement, the loan period will be 45 years. The Ministry of Defence will use the SAFE funding to acquire air defence capabilities, military vehicles, artillery shells, and other ammunition, as well as procure drones for Ukraine. Procurements and deliveries must be completed by 2030. Estonia has allocated more than 5% of GDP annually to national defence in the coming years. Speaking at the recent NATO summit in Turkey, Prime Minister Kristen Michal said that Estonia was spending almost 7% of GDP on defence in 2026, ERR reported. A Defence Ministry representative told Postimees that Estonia’s core military expenditure amounted to 5.4% of GDP and defence-related spending to 1.5% of GDP.
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