The Department of Defense today announced entering into a bilateral, non-binding Security of Supply Arrangement (SOSA) with the Republic of Estonia. The arrangement will enable both the U.S. and Estonia to acquire the industrial resources they need to quickly meet defense requirements, resolve unanticipated disruptions that challenge defense capabilities, and promote supply chain resiliency.
“This Security of Supply Arrangement is a robust addition to our prolific defense partnership with Estonia,” said Dr. William A. LaPlante, Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment. “This joining together will strengthen our respective national security and supply resiliency for years to come.”
The SOSA was signed on October 20 by Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, Dr. William LaPlante and the Director General of the Estonian Centre for Defence Investment, Mr. Magnus-Valdemar Saar at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.
In the Arrangement, the U.S. and Estonia commit intent to support one another’s priority delivery requests for procurement of critical national defense resources. The U.S. will provide Estonia assurances under the U.S. Defense Priorities and Allocations System, with program determinations by DoD and rating authorization by the Department of Commerce. Estonia will in turn establish a government-industry Code of Conduct with its industrial base, where Estonian firms will voluntarily agree to make every reasonable effort to provide the U.S. priority support.
SOSAs are an important mechanism for DoD to strengthen interoperability with defense trade partners. The Arrangements institute working groups, establish communication mechanisms, streamline DoD processes, and proactively act to allay anticipated supply chain issues in peacetime, emergency, and armed conflict. For more information, visit: https://www.businessdefense.gov/security-of-supply.html
Estonia is the fourteenth SOSA partner of the U.S. Other SOSA partners include Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
About the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy (OASD (IBP):
The OASD IBP works with domestic and international partners to forge and sustain a robust, secure, and resilient industrial base enabling the warfighter, now and in the future.