Finland said it will buy Israel’s David’s Sling missile defense system on Wednesday, only one day after becoming a member of NATO.
A statement from Finland’s Defense Ministry says that the first agreement is valued about $344 million. The system will be sent by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, which is based in Israel.
“The Ministry of Defense has given the Finnish Defense Forces permission to buy the David’s Sling system as the country’s next long-range air defense system… The announcement added that the David’s Sling system will make Finland’s ground-based air defense capabilities far more effective.
“This purchase will give the Finnish Defense Forces a new way to intercept targets at high altitude. At the same time, Finland’s Defense Minister Antti Kaikkonen said, “We are continuing the ambitious and long-term development of Finland’s defense capability in a new security environment.”
David’s Sling, which is also known as the Magic Wand, can stop rockets and missiles from 25 to 185 miles away. The Finnish Defense Ministry says that the system’s minimum altitude requirement for the country is 9.3 miles.
“The contract to buy the system will have a separate component between the Israeli Ministry of Defense and the Finnish Ministry of Defense to make sure that the system will always be available. The setup will make sure that important parts of the system are always available,” the statement said.
Since the system was made by both Israel and the U.S., the acquisition will need a sales release from the U.S. But it’s unlikely that Washington will try to stop the deal, as President Joe Biden liked the fact that Finland joined NATO when Russia invaded Ukraine last year.
