Estonian defense minister Pevkur resigns after EUR 70 million deal collapses

Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur has submitted his resignation amid a scandal over the procurement of ammunition for Ukraine.

This was reported by ERR.

The resignation was prompted by a deal in which Estonia paid a EUR 70 million advance to Indian businessmen who had not previously delivered a single shell. In the end, the ammunition was never transferred to Kyiv.

This deal was just one of several episodes that drew criticism from Estonia’s National Audit Office.

Pevkur himself stated that he had not read the contracts and had not participated in their preparation.

“The defense minister does not negotiate contracts, the defense minister does not count socks and bullets. The defense minister makes the fundamental decision to support Ukraine,” he said.

Pevkur had served as Estonia’s defense minister since 2022.

Earlier, the outlet reported that Latvia’s prime minister had resigned after Ukrainian drones flew into the country. Prior to that, Latvia’s defense minister had also stepped down over the same drone incident.