Czech defence firm: We warned our government about unreliable Datasel
Czech ammunition maker STV Group says it too was defrauded by India's Datasel, the company at the center of Estonia's failed ammunition deal for Ukraine, and had earlier warned Czech authorities against dealing with it.
A representative of Czech ammunition manufacturer STV Group, Dominik Drda, told Delfi that Indian company Datasel, which signed a contract with Estonia, is a textbook example of a fraudulent operator. Drda said he has been closely following the scandal in Estonia because Datasel advertises STV Group's products on its website, and because STV itself fell victim to the Indian company's deception.
According to Drda, Datasel constantly lies and uses every opportunity to avoid fulfilling its contractual obligations.
Undelivered order and planned lawsuit
In 2024, STV Group ordered ammunition from Datasel but later discovered the company was merely a middleman hiding behind the facade of a manufacturer. Datasel managed to deliver only 10 percent of the agreed goods and did not return an advance payment of several million euros to STV Group. To resolve the situation and recover the unpaid funds, STV Group is preparing to take legal action against Datasel.
Since the Czech government procures weapons for Ukraine as part of an international initiative, STV warned Czech authorities about Datasel's unreliability. The company recommended not letting Datasel deceive them and not signing any contracts with it — advice that, fortunately, was heeded.
Estonia's case
Estonia sought to purchase ammunition for Ukraine and paid the Indian company a total of 70 million euros in advance, even though the company had never previously sold a single shell. Instead of ammunition, Estonia kept receiving new promises, and the dispute is now being examined in court.
In August 2024, the State Centre for Defence Investments (RKIK) signed its first purchase agreement with Datasel and transferred the first 15 million euros — funds that came not from Estonia's state budget but from the European Peace Facility.
RKIK's current director general, Elmar Vaher, said he personally would not have signed such a contract, adding that the decision was made by a very narrow circle of people and that, for instance, the agency's then-head of procurement knew nothing about it. Former RKIK head Magnus-Valdemar Saar disputed this, acknowledging that procuring ammunition from third countries carries risks, but insisting that no major decision was made without the approval of the ministry's leadership.
