Estonia proposes agreement to buy Ukrainian weapons

WARSAW, Poland — Estonia’s authorities are showing interest in combat-proven weapons from Ukraine, including long-range missiles, and hope to reach an agreement with the Ukrainian government to facilitate arms purchases despite Kyiv’s ban on exports by its own defense industry.

Under Ukraine’s law, the country’s defense companies are obliged to deliver their entire output to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The nation’s lawmakers and government officials are currently discussing ways to share the sector’s products with allies, and countries such as Estonia are following the talks. During his visit to Ukraine last month, Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur stated that various weapons, including the R-360 Neptune subsonic cruise missile developed by State Kyiv Design Bureau Luch, could be of interest to his country’s military.

Eleka Rugam-Rebane a spokesperson for the Estonian Ministry of Defence, told Defense News that bilateral agreements could be implemented to give allies access to weapons whose “value and quality mark … is certainly based on their combat experience.”

“Export bans will not pose a barrier if countries reach mutual agreements, and such cooperation would benefit both Estonian and Ukrainian defense industries,” she said.

“Our defense industries already have a solid working relationship: many Estonian companies are active in Ukraine, and we equally encourage all Ukrainian companies to participate in public tenders in Estonia,” said Rugam-Rebane. “We hope that Ukrainian manufacturers will be able to participate in public tenders not only in Estonia but also in other international markets relevant to them.”

Even a partial relaxation of the export ban could generate a significant stream of income for the Ukrainian economy as it is combating Russia’s ongoing invasion. Speaking in Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, on Sept. 5, lawmaker Halyna Yanchenko said the country’s defense sector is able to manufacture products worth some $20 billion annually.

“At the same time, the state is able to purchase weapons for only $6 billion, this includes purchases from abroad. We are slowing down the development of a strategic industry through export restrictions,” Yanchenko said.

Jaroslaw Adamowski is the Poland correspondent for Defense News.

波兰华沙——爱沙尼亚当局对来自乌克兰的久经沙场考验的武器（包括远程导弹）表现出兴趣，并希望与乌克兰政府达成协议，以促进武器购买，尽管基辅禁止其国防工业出口武器。

根据乌克兰法律，该国国防企业有义务将其全部产品交付给乌克兰武装部队。目前，乌克兰议员和政府官员正在讨论如何与盟友分享该行业的产品，爱沙尼亚等国也在关注相关谈判。爱沙尼亚国防部长汉诺·佩夫库尔上个月访问乌克兰时表示，包括基辅国家设计局“卢奇”研制的R-360“海王星”亚音速巡航导弹在内的多种武器可能对爱沙尼亚军方有价值。

爱沙尼亚国防部发言人埃莱卡·鲁加姆-雷巴内告诉《防务新闻》，可以实施双边协议，使盟友能够获得“价值和质量标志……当然是基于他们的实战经验”的武器。

她表示：“如果各国达成相互协议，出口禁令就不会构成障碍，这种合作将使爱沙尼亚和乌克兰的国防工业都受益。”

“我们的国防工业已经建立了稳固的合作关系：许多爱沙尼亚公司在乌克兰开展业务，我们也同样鼓励所有乌克兰公司参与爱沙尼亚的公开招标，”鲁加姆-雷巴内说。“我们希望乌克兰制造商不仅能够参与爱沙尼亚的公开招标，还能参与其他相关的国际市场招标。”

即使部分放松出口禁令，也能为正在对抗俄罗斯持续入侵的乌克兰经济带来可观的收入。9月5日，乌克兰最高拉达议员哈莉娜·扬琴科在议会发言时表示，该国国防部门每年能够生产价值约200亿美元的产品。

“与此同时，国家只能用60亿美元购买武器，这其中还包括从国外采购。我们正在通过出口限制来减缓战略产业的发展，”扬琴科说。

Jaroslaw Adamowski 是《防务新闻》驻波兰记者。