17 August 2023; MEMO: The United States (US) granted authorisation for the sale of Israel’s Arrow 3 missile defence system to Germany, in a deal worth $3.5 billion, reported Reuters.
The ministry said in a statement today that senior officials from the Israeli and German defence ministries would sign a letter of commitment to the deal with a preliminary payment of $600 million.
Germany’s air force is expected to take delivery of the Arrow 3 system by 2025, with complete operational deployment anticipated by 2030.
Israel and the US have been jointly developing the multi-billion-dollar Arrow missile defence system since 1986. It’s considered the most advanced long-range missile defence system, meant to intercept ballistic missiles outside the Earth’s atmosphere, allowing for interceptions to occur at significant altitudes above the atmospheric layer.
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Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant called the US approval “an expression of confidence in the excellent capabilities of Israel’s defence industries” and a reflection of US-Israeli “powerful defence ties.”
Chairwoman of the German Bundestag’s Defence Committee, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, said she was “relieved” by the US approval of the deal.
The Arrow 3 system “will be operational by the end of 2025 and on our initiative will become part of a European air defence system,” she told DPA news agency.
“What makes it special is that it is the first anti-ballistic system that can also be used in the stratosphere, i.e. at an altitude of 100km,” Strack-Zimmermann added. “In future, it will help protect Germany and our neighbouring countries from air strikes.”
According to Israel’s Army Radio, the signing ceremony with Germany on the Arrow 3 sale is set for November.
