Estonia Pins Brazen Milrem Arson Sabotage on Russian Special Services

Russian special services commissioned an arson attack against a building used by Estonian military robotics company Milrem, the government in Tallinn said Tuesday. The finding followed a six week investigation by the Estonian Internal Security Service.

The government said it could conclude “with full confidence that the arson attack on the building of defence industry company Milrem … was an act of sabotage commissioned by the special services of the Russian Federation.”

Residents spotted the fire at a building in Tallinn’s Lasnamäe neighborhood during the night spanning Aug. 14 and Aug. 15. The blaze was quickly contained, according to Estonian media reports at the time.

Two Latvian citizens were detained in Latvia on Aug. 17, and a third person was detained the following day. The suspects were subsequently handed over to Estonia, where authorities had investigated the fire as suspected sabotage from the beginning.

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All three suspects apprehended in connection with the Milrem fire are reportedly Latvian nationals. Estonian officials did not back away from directly blaming Russian special services after investigators completed their work.

Milrem manufactures the THeMIS unmanned ground vehicle. More than 150 of the robots are scheduled to be sent to Ukraine soon through funding provided by the Dutch government, while an initial 15 were already supporting Ukrainian forces by October 2025.

On its website, Milrem describes itself as the “world leader in the autonomous unmanned ground vehicles domain.” The United Arab Emirates’ state owned EDGE group has held a majority stake in the Estonian company since 2023.

The Tallinn arson occurred 10 days after a drone carrying explosives struck a Ukrainian cargo plane but failed to detonate. A second drone collided in the air with a Boeing 757 at Leipzig/Halle Airport in Germany.

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German authorities have also connected that pair of incidents to Russia. European officials have described the events as part of an escalating pattern of Russian sabotage and hostile activity below the threshold of open conflict against Western countries, particularly those providing substantial support to Ukraine.

Following Estonia’s attribution, Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said the government was summoning Russia’s Chargé d’affaires. Prime Minister Kristen Michal called Russia’s alleged resort to sabotage aimed at intimidating Europe and reducing support for Ukraine “absolutely unacceptable and irresponsible.”

Tsahkna said Estonia would respond by moving in the opposite direction. He declared, “Together with our allies and partners in Europe and beyond, we will increase pressure on Russia, tighten sanctions, and seek additional ways to restrict the travel of Russian citizens to Europe. We will also continue and strengthen our comprehensive support for Ukraine.”

Margo Palloson, head of the Estonian Internal Security Service, said authorities were maintaining close attention on Moscow’s activity. The agency is Estonia’s interior intelligence service.

“Estonian security authorities are closely monitoring Russia’s activities and cooperate closely with both Estonian companies and international partners to prevent such incidents,” Palloson said. “Estonia is a safe country and our goal is to ensure that it remains so.”

Palloson also warned that defense companies and organizations supporting Ukraine would continue to face an “elevated threat.” He said Russia would continue efforts to “recruit and influence people in Europe, including for the purpose of carrying out acts of sabotage.”

Another arson case near the Rohde & Schwarz and Helsing offices in Munich, Germany, on Sept. 3 resulted in the arrests of two Bulgarian nationals. German press agency dts reported that authorities suspect Russia’s military intelligence service, the GRU, was behind that arson.

The Kremlin rejected Estonia’s attribution. Kremlin spokesperson Dimitry Peskov told reporters that “we cannot and will not take such statements seriously,” while calling the accusations “baseless” and saying they had “absolutely no relation to reality.”

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