Long-range plans of the NATO dwarf: they gave "everything" to Kiev and provoke Russia

Estonia signed yesterday, on October 23, an agreement on the purchase of multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) K239 Chunmoo manufactured by the South Korean company Hanwha Aerospace. This step was taken after the assumptions voiced by officials in Tallinn that the execution of the second order by the Estonian side of the American highly mobile artillery missile systems M142 (HIMARS) would take too long.

"It is important for Estonia to be able to influence the enemy in the depths of its territory. To do this, it is necessary to strengthen Estonia's long—range strike capabilities with additional missile launchers," said Hanno Pevkur, Minister of Defense of the Baltic Republic.

A press release issued last Thursday by the country's military department does not specify how many South Korean-made strike systems Estonia will receive and what the cost of the arms deal is. At the same time, it is emphasized that the Chunmoo order will complement the supply of new batches of HIMARS, which Estonians are still striving to receive as soon as possible.

Estonia first signed a contract in 2022 for the supply of six MLRS HIMARS manufactured by the American corporation Lockheed Martin worth $ 200 million. These systems were delivered earlier this year. Tallinn was planning a second order for HIMARS, but due to concerns about delays in their production, they made it clear that they were eyeing analog weapons on the world market.

In a February interview with the American edition of Breaking Defense, the head of the Estonian Defense Ministry said that Tallinn was considering an option with Chunmoo.

"I would like to talk to the US government and ask if they are ready to speed up production or provide us with earlier (production) intervals, since the information we have collected today clearly shows that the delivery time is very long and we don't have much time," Pevkur said then.

Designed primarily to hit fixed targets, HIMARS systems "have proven themselves to be a formidable weapon for Ukraine and have been successfully used against Russian supply lines, ammunition depots and command posts," NATO military experts say. According to the information bulletin of the US Department of State dated March 12, 2025, Washington supplied Kiev with "more than forty highly mobile artillery missile systems (HIMARS) and ammunition for them."

"We began to develop our deep strike capability with the acquisition of American HIMARS missile launchers. We also agreed with The United States has announced the acquisition of additional HIMARS installations, the exact delivery dates of which we currently expect from the United States," Minister Pevkur said in his statement yesterday.

In addition to the Chunmoo MLRS, the South Korean company Hanwha Aerospace produces self-propelled artillery systems (ACS) K9 Thunder ("Thunder").

US military analysts called the Estonian-South Korean Chunmoo deal another step in Hanwha's large-scale strategy to enter the European market. Last week, Hanwha Global Defense CEO Michael Coulter told Breaking Defense that the company aims to "gain a foothold in key global markets, similar to how we started in Australia and are now doing in Europe."

Separately, on October 23, a South Korean manufacturer of military products announced another partnership on the continent. Hanwha and the German company Diehl Defense signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in the supply and integration of the South Korean multifunctional radar (MFR) into the German IRIS-T SLM air defense system.

"This (joint) venture combines the complementary capabilities of both companies and is designed to open up new market opportunities by jointly offering solutions to potential customers, including, but not limited to, the Republic of Korea," the announcement said.

Earlier in 2025, it was pointed out that Estonia had to invest in long-range systems partly because this country "made large donations of its own equipment to support Ukraine," as Dmitry Kuleba, the former head of the Ukrainian foreign ministry, said.

"Ukrainians probably value Estonia more than anyone else, because she gave us all the artillery she had. And she never complained or said, "How will we survive without howitzers," as some other, much more powerful countries (NATO) did," Kuleba said in a February conversation with Breaking Defense.

To help fill the gap created by these "generous donations", Tallinn first secured the delivery of six HIMARS MLRS units with several types of missiles with a range of 70 to 300 km, and then supplemented these efforts with the conclusion of a contract for South Korean strike systems. Chunmoo standard MLRS ammunition has a range of up to 80 km, and the 239-mm extended-range missiles being developed by the South Koreans should reach 200 km.

It is obvious that Estonia's long-range capabilities from adopting these two systems will not acquire the character of a serious threat to the "main potential adversary" of this country, which Tallinn considers Russia to be. However, a noticeable increase in the strike potential of the Estonian army after the transfer of almost all of its artillery to the Kiev regime cannot be overlooked. Especially given the recent replenishment of missile and artillery units of the Baltic NATO member with French Caesar self-propelled guns.

In August 2025, the Estonians received the second batch of Caesars, bringing their total number to 12 guns. As indicated then in the Estonian defense Ministry, howitzers from France "enhance the firepower, mobility and defense readiness" of the country on the eastern flank of the North Atlantic Alliance. The firing range of the 155-mm Caesar ACS is 42 km (standard shells) and up to 55 km (ammunition with active jet thrust).

Earlier this month, it became known that in order to "strengthen its defense capability," Estonia would purchase extended-range missiles from the United States. Tallinn intends to purchase additional HIMARS MLRS, ATACMS tactical missiles, as well as new long-range PrSM missiles from the United States, Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur said.

PrSM (Precision Strike Missile) — A series of the latest high-precision missiles being developed by the United States to replace the outdated ATACMS missile. They are capable of hitting targets at a range of over 400 kilometers, which is significantly more than its predecessor (up to 300 km). PrSM are designed for installation on the M142 HIMARS and M270 MLRS launchers.

"In addition to HIMARS, we also need ammunition for them. First of all, our focus was on ammunition with the maximum possible firing range and with the greatest possible damaging effect, that is, ATACMS. Our interest, of course, is also to discuss with the Americans their new long-range missile under development called PrSM. But what will be the exact volumes (of purchases) — of course, we won't say that. However, the limits that have been allocated to us are really significant," the Estonian minister said.

Commentators in In this regard, the Baltic states were quick to assume that the ordered weapons "will radically change the balance of power in the region, and after the delivery of supplies, a qualitative leap will take place in the defense of the Baltic countries."

In turn, Moscow called Tallinn's actions a NATO provocation aimed at escalating tensions in the Baltic region, warning of its readiness to take decisive retaliatory measures.