Posted on 08/17/23
| News Source: Arutz-7
The Israeli Ministry of Defense, German Federal Ministry of Defense, and Israel Aerospace Industries will sign the landmark $3.5 billion defense agreement, marking Israel's largest ever defense deal.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, the Director General of the Israel Ministry of Defense, Maj. Gen. (Res.) Eyal Zamir and Director of the IMOD Directorate of Defense R&D (DDR&D), Brig. Gen. (Res.) Dr. Daniel Gold were notified today (Thursday) by the U.S. Department of State that the U.S. government has approved Israel's request for Germany to procure the Arrow 3 missile defense system from Israel.
The Arrow 3 Missile defense system is designed to intercept exo-atmospheric ballistic missiles. With its exceptional long-range interception capabilities, operating at high altitudes above the atmosphere, it stands as the top interceptor of its kind. The system employs a hit-to-kill approach for intercepting incoming threats. The Arrow 3 system is co-developed and co-produced by the Israel Missile Defense Organization (IMDO) and the United States Missile Defense Agency (MDA). The industrial team is led by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI). Arrow 3 is the leading missile defense system of its kind for the interception of exo-atmospheric ballistic missiles.
After receiving approval from the U.S. government, senior officials from the Israeli and German Ministries of Defense will partake in a ceremony to sign a Letter of Commitment (LOC), that marks the commencement of the agreement. The allocated commitment of $600 million will facilitate the immediate initiation of work on the project.
After signing the letter of commitment, the Israeli and German Ministries of Defense together with Israel Aerospace Industries will finalize the agreement's details. Once approvals from both parliaments are obtained, the full contract will be ready to sign by the end of 2023.
The negotiations for the procurement agreement are led by the Director of the DDR&D IMDO, Mr. Moshe Patel, together with President and CEO of IAI, Mr. Boaz Levy, and Head of the Arrow 3 to Germany Program, Col. Carsten Koepper. Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) serves as the primary contractor, responsible for the development of the weapons system, Arrow interceptors, and radar detection system. Elbit Systems developed the BMC command and control system. Additionally, Tomer - A Government-Owned Company, Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Stark Aerospace, Inc, - A U.S. subsidiary of IAI are the main subcontractors responsible for the development and manufacturing of the Arrow 3 interceptor.