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In addition to the US HIMARS, Estonia plans to purchase South Korean Chunmoo rocket launchers

Republic of Estonia - Ministry of Defence

23. October 2025 - 14:35

On Thursday, Estonian Minister of Defence Hanno Pevkur and South Korean Minister of Defence Ahn Gyu-back signed a defence cooperation agreement in Seoul, South Korea, under which Estonia plans to purchase South Korean Chunmoo rocket launchers to supplement its US HIMARS units. The planned cooperation also means tens of millions in direct investments for the Estonian defence industry.

Estonia is rapidly increasing its deep-strike capability, which will enable it to wage war on enemy territory, if necessary, and ensure the deterrence and defence capabilities of Estonia as well as NATO more broadly. To this end, Estonia wishes to acquire South Korean K239 Chunmoo rocket launchers in addition to its existing HIMARS units. At the same time, the process of procuring additional HIMARS rocket launchers from the United States continues.

'It is important for Estonia to have the ability to influence the enemy deep within its territory. To this end, it is necessary to increase Estonia's deep-strike capability with additional rocket launchers. We began developing our deep-strike capability with the acquisition of US HIMARS rocket launchers, and we have also agreed with the US on the acquisition of additional HIMARS units, for which we are currently awaiting exact delivery dates from the US. To further strengthen its deep-strike capability, the Defence Forces have selected Chunmoo rocket launchers manufactured by a South Korean company. A similar solution based on US and South Korean rocket launchers is also used by Poland, for example,' explained Minister of Defence Hanno Pevkur.

'What is also crucial for me about this agreement is that a significant share of the transaction volume will go to the Estonian industry through the application of the principle of localisation. This means tens of millions of euros in direct investments in Estonia's defence industry,' said Pevkur.

Further discussions on the technical details of the procurement of Chunmoo rocket launchers will take place between the Estonian Centre for Defence Investments (ECDI), the Korean export agency, and the manufacturer. The next step involves concluding the relevant framework agreements.

Estonia has also engaged in defence cooperation with South Korea in the past: the nation's K9 self-propelled howitzers have also been manufactured by Hanhwa Aerospace. Estonia will have 36 of them by the end of next year.

During his visit to South Korea, Minister Pevkur met with leaders of the South Korean Ministry of National Defence and, together with his colleagues from the ECDI, visited ADEX 2025, Asia's largest defence industry exhibition. A delegation consisting of representatives of Estonian defence industry companies also visited the exhibition.