Military drone factory burns down in Estonia; Latvia detains two arson suspects

Overnight on Saturday, a fire broke out at a building belonging to Milrem Robotics in Tallinn's Lasnamäe district. The company manufactures unmanned ground military vehicles, some of which are supplied to Ukraine. Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal announced the news on Facebook on Tuesday.

According to him, firefighters brought the blaze under control, no one was hurt, and suspects in the arson have already been identified. The investigation has confirmed that the fire was a planned attack, according to the Estonian news portal ERR.

Arrests in Latvia

Meanwhile, Latvian police have detained two suspects and are in talks with Estonian authorities over their extradition. State prosecutor Gardi Andersone said investigators are exploring all possible leads, including sabotage, but could not yet share further details. The motive behind the attack remains unclear, though Estonia's prime minister did not rule out the involvement of Russian intelligence services.

Estonia's response

"If the goal of this act was to intimidate Estonia, divide our citizens, or force us to abandon our support for Ukraine, it will not succeed. Estonia will not be intimidated or knocked off course. We stand by our decisions and will continue supporting Ukraine," Kristen Michal said.

Margo Palloson, head of Estonia's Internal Security Service, described Russia as a long-term existential threat to the country. She said this means Estonia must remain prepared for possible provocations and non-military threats from Moscow, according to the news outlet Õhtuleht.

Around Prague, based on reporting by novinky.cz