Former EDF commander offered defense minister post

Former Estonian Defense Forces (EDF) commander General Martin Herem has been offered the defense minister post by Prime Minister Kristen Michal, Herem told ERR.

Herem says he is weighing up the offer. Following Hanno Pevkur's resignation as defense minister on Wednesday, a replacement is being sought.

Herem said the position came up in a conversation with the prime minister outside the recording of Michal's own podcast. "Was I made an offer? Essentially, yes. But it was more an invitation to consider it, rather than, 'Hey, take the job.' I assume he has some other candidates as well. But in any case, the idea was planted in my head that I might get a phone call and then I would have to say yes or no. So now I suppose I have to think about it," Herem said.

Herem added that he will not be in Estonia next week. "I intend to carry on doing what I'm doing for now. Whatever phone call I might get, I won't be in Estonia next week," he said.

However, Herem said he has no ambition to become a minister. "I've already contributed to developing the Estonian state, and I will continue doing so. I have to think very seriously about why I should be in that position. And why I couldn't continue doing what I'm doing today and still be useful to the country," Herem said.

"Am I ready to be a minister? No. Does Estonia need saving? Yes, it does. Do I have to do that at that level? That I'm not sure about," he added.

Speaking about the shell deal that caused the scandal, Herem defended the risks taken. "No one else is going to do these things for the Estonian state. And Estonia has helped Ukraine a great deal by taking risks. Then, at some point, when those risks materialize, you're seen as having done something wrong. I don't believe there was any corruption or anything like that," the former EDF comander said.

"And now, when you're in a situation where you see that Ukraine needs help, you think you can help, but there are certain risks involved, at some point doing nothing seems considerably worse than going ahead and perhaps getting burned. In the end, you take responsibility and resign, and that's that," Herem added.

Herem, now a retired general, served as EDF commander December 2018 until June 2024. He joined private sector firm Milrem Robotics as a military strategy adviser in August last year.

Hanno Pevkur resigned as defense minister on Wednesday after a €70 million shell procurement scandal emerged. Criminal proceedings have been opened, though no one has been named as a suspect. Michal has said the Reform Party will begin discussing candidates for the new defense minister next week.

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!

Editor:
Andrew Whyte, Aleksander Krjukov