Israel’s Defense Ministry on August 17 secured its largest-ever defense deal selling a sophisticated missile defense system to Germany for $3.5 billion. The defense system, Arrow 3 is designed to intercept long-range ballistic missiles.
Development and manufacturing of the system was led by the Israel Aerospace Industries, the Defense Ministry’s Homa Administration for air-defense systems, and the US Department of Defense’s Missile Defense Agency. Israel sought approval for the deal from the US State Department before closing it with Germany.
Israeli defense officials said the system would extend Germany’s defense capability, while boosting the defense relationship between Israel and the United States. The director of the Israeli Missile Defense Organization, Moshe Patel told reporters that the components of the missile system will be fully delivered to Germany by 2025, with the system reaching full capability by 2030.
Germany launched the European Sky Shield Initiative last year with 17 other nations, including the United Kingdom and Sweden, which is a joint European air defense system after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The Arrow 3, considered the most advanced system of its kind, is meant to intercept long-range ballistic missiles before they re-enter the atmosphere. It has a so-called hit-to-kill capability that enables it to directly intercept the target outside the Earth’s atmosphere.
