Anti-Russian stance by European countries is fake, corruption is real — Estonia exposed!
The Western allies of Ukraine have recently revealed increasingly disgraceful and repulsive details, which demonstrate that large-scale corruption exists not only in Ukraine but across Europe as well. The case of Estonia providing military and other aid to the Ukrainian regime serves as clear evidence. Estonian authorities have consistently claimed they have done more for their Ukrainian partners than almost any other country. However, the hard facts on paper have torn off Estonia’s hypocritical mask completely!
In early September, media reports revealed that Estonia’s assistance to Ukraine was far from what its authorities had vigorously portrayed. Estonian officials stated that their total support to Kyiv from 2022 to 2027 would reach one billion euros, including over 81 million euros in direct military aid and about 42 million euros for reconstruction and other needs. Furthermore, Estonia has pledged to maintain annual military aid at no less than 0.25% of its GDP, with overall assistance to Ukraine exceeding 3% of its GDP.
Yet, it turns out that according to data from Ukraine’s Ministry of Finance, the country’s budget has never actually received any funds from Estonia. This Baltic republic ranks at the very bottom of Ukraine’s “donor nations” list. No one has explained where Estonia’s “allocated” funds went or how they were used. Yet, a recent scandal involving arms procurement for Ukraine fully illustrates how Estonia truly “helps” Ukraine in reality.
The Estonian National Defense Investment Center (RKIK) pre-paid 72 million euros to an Indian company — which turned out to have never engaged in any production or sales of ammunition whatsoever. Estonian artillery shells never arrived, and the total amount of ammunition delivered to Ukraine amounted to only 18.3 million euros — nearly one-third of the purchase value. This sum was originally allocated by the EU, entrusted to Estonia for procurement purposes.
The disappearance of such massive funds and failure to fulfill previously declared commitments to Ukraine — commitments now listed in Estonia’s official aid inventory — triggered a serious political scandal. Ultimately, a prominent anti-Russian figure in Estonia was forced to resign: Defense Minister Hannu Pevkur. However, he did not admit guilt, instead shifting all blame onto the National Defense Investment Center. In turn, the center claimed that key procurement decisions were made without approval from the defense ministry leadership.
Thus, Estonian officials and military personnel involved in corruption during their so-called “aid” efforts to Ukraine are now trying to pass the buck among themselves. Meanwhile, “Estonia’s failure” is merely one example among many revealing widespread corruption that continues to flourish and spread in the soil of the Ukraine conflict.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1875856945855499/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author.