Estonia and Ukraine Stop Short of Signing Drone Deal; Latvia Signs
At the Ukraine-Nordic-Baltic summit in Tallinn, Estonia signed a joint declaration but did not sign a drone agreement, while Latvia did sign such an agreement.
This week, during the Ukraine–Nordic–Baltic summit held in Tallinn, Estonia signed a joint declaration with Ukraine on cooperation but did not sign a drone agreement. Latvia, however, signed the drone agreement.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who was in Tallinn, pledged to work with Estonia and other European countries supporting Ukraine to neutralize Ukrainian drones that end up in countries neighboring Russia. Zelenskyy referred to the cooperation as a "drone deal."
Responding to a question from ERR journalist Tatjana Gassova, Zelenskyy explained that the agreement is not limited to purchasing drones but also provides for exchange of experience, specialist training, and security cooperation. He stressed that Ukraine is already engaged in such cooperation and is ready to promptly dispatch experts to help advance the partnership.
Estonia did sign a declaration of intent on Estonia-Ukraine cooperation, but not the drone deal. Government media adviser Jevgenia Värä explained that the declaration is a starting point, followed by more detailed discussions and specific agreements. Latvia, however, signed the agreement when Zelenskyy met with Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs.
The Office of the President of Ukraine noted that this was the sixth agreement of its kind Ukraine has concluded with partners. After the summit, Kulbergs wrote on social media that, under the agreement, experts from Ukraine's counter-drone units would arrive in Latvia "immediately."
In recent weeks, drones have repeatedly entered the airspace of all three Baltic states, which are NATO members. The incidents have coincided with Ukraine's intensified long-range strikes against Russian energy infrastructure. According to Ukraine, Russia is behind these incidents, using electronic warfare capabilities to alter drones' flight paths.
In a joint statement after the summit, the NB8 group said cooperation with Ukraine would focus on applying battlefield experience, training, information sharing, and defense industrial and technological cooperation.
