Estonian Defense Minister Points to Possible Mixed Armored Maneuver Fleet

September 20, 2011 defense-aerospace.com

(Source: Forecast International; issued September 20, 2011)

NEWTOWN, Conn. --- Estonia is moving toward a decision on the vehicles to be used for its future armored maneuver unit, according to Defense Minister Mart Laar. Under its Long-Term Defense Development Plan 2009-2018, Estonia cited the formation of an armored maneuver unit as a benchmark goal.

The initial plan was to equip this unit with either main battle tanks or armored infantry fighting vehicles. The idea of a tank purchase was highly questionable at the time due to the small size of the Estonian Army, the lack of supporting infrastructure, and Estonia's marshy terrain. But the plan was drawn up shortly after the Russian incursion into Georgia in August 2008, which unnerved the tiny Baltic country due to its history of being controlled by its larger neighbor to the east. Nonetheless, Estonia's border with Russia is largely buffered by water in the form of three lakes, making the need for, and utility of, tanks a highly questionable proposition.

The tiny country suffered a devastating recession in 2009 in which the economy shrank by 14 percent. This contraction came on the back of a recession from the previous year and, despite a return to growth, the economy is nowhere near the average 8.4 growth experienced between 2000 and 2007.

The center-right Ansip government has been careful in its budgetary management, allowing the country to gain access to euro currency at the start of the year. To do so, however, the government slashed defense spending by an average of 6.75 percent in 2009 and 2010, bringing total military investment down to 1.3 percent of national GDP ($19 billion). As a result, many of the projects assumed in Defense Plan 2018 were put on hold.

Having held the country's budget deficit in check and gained accession into the eurozone, the Ansip government chose to revisit defense investment, opting to boost the budget by 7.5 percent - enough to bring Estonia's defense budget to its highest point since independence in 1991.

Now the Defense Ministry can once again tackle some of the projects pushed aside during the austerity period. While developing the armored maneuver capability of the Estonian Army is now slowly moving forward, the hope, according to Defense Minister Laar, is that instead of an either/or vehicle proposition, the solution may be found in the acquisition of both. A new defense development plan in the works will determine the answer, but Laar is on record as stating his preference would be for both types of vehicles as the most effective solution.