Poland has signed a $1.2 billion deal with American weapons manufacturer Raytheon to make missile components.
According to a report by Bloomberg on August 12, the agreement will see Poland produce parts for the US Patriot missile defence system domestically.
A total of 48 Patriot M903 launch stations are set to be built as part of the agreement, with US Ambassador to Poland Mark Brzezinski praising the deal as a tightening of the alliance between his country and Warsaw.
“When it comes to air defence, Poland has never been as advanced as it is today,” he said, adding that the US and Polish Governments had “never been so close.”
The deal is reportedly the final part of an arms agreement set in motion by then-US president Donald Trump in 2017 for the US to supply Poland with air defence equipment.
A highlight of the arrangement was the $15 billion sale of an integrated air and missile defence system in 2023. The package was reported to include RTX-made Patriot Configuration-3+ Modernised Fire Units, 644 Lockheed Martin-manufactured Patriot Advanced Capability-3 Missile Segment Enhancement missiles, and 12 Lower Tier Air and Missile Defence Sensors.
Some of the Patriot systems sent to Poland have since been shipped to Ukraine, with the US Government committing to hand Warsaw replacement platforms in exchange for allowing its anti-air platforms to be handed to Kyiv.
COMMENT: JD Vance knows Europe must grow up and pay for its own defence writes Kevin Myershttps://t.co/SLQytzkzai
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