Kalev Koidumäe is a Reserve Colonel with 30 years of experience in the Defence Forces, having served as the Commander of the Support Command, as a Defence Attaché in the Nordic countries and until the end of last year he was the Commander of the Territorial District North of the Defence League.
The main objective of the new CEO is to support Estonia’s national defence in peacetime and in times of crisis by producing defence materials and providing services according to the needs of the Ministry of Defence and other agencies. Another important goal is to strengthen the competitiveness of the defence industry sector in export markets, which is a sector with a high level of development and smart jobs. To this end, the association will continue to participate in research and development activities involving ministries, research institutions and the defence industry. This multi-stakeholder cooperation will provide a very good basis for the domestic defence industry to contribute to the Estonian economy and research through increased export turnover.
Taavi Veskimägi, Chairman of the Association’s Council, commented that the needs of the Estonian Defence Forces, the innovative ideas and fresh product development, knowledge and experience of the companies are world-class, but in order to penetrate large markets and reach deals with the world’s leading companies, forces must be combined. The association must be able to continuously support its members in this respect, in how to provide products and services that meet the future capability development needs of the defence forces. Kalev Koidumäe is the best man to fulfil this task. At the same time, the Council would like to express its gratitude and appreciation to the previous CEO, Tarmo Ränisoo, for his excellent work in promoting the Estonian Defence and Aerospace Industry Association.
