Estonia's Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur does not believe that Russia has been critically weakened after nine months of war in Ukraine. "We have to be honest and clear: The Russian Navy and Air Force are more or less as big as they were before the war," Pevkur told dpa during a visit to Berlin.
Although the Russian land forces had lost considerable strength, they would "sooner rather than later" have the size they had before February 24 when they launched their offensive - or even larger. Russia will also learn from its military experience in Ukraine, he argued: "We have no reason to believe that the threat from Russia is somehow reduced or that the threat to NATO is reduced."
The minister warned against "war weariness" in Western countries, arguing that "this is exactly what Russia wants to achieve."
"Russia is ready to suffer longer," he said.
Tallinn plans to spend 2.84% of GDP on defense in 2023 and 3.2% in 2024, Pevkur said. The general target for NATO countries is 2%.
