Latest news with #anti-aircraft
Reuters
3 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
Romania to buy Israeli anti-aircraft systems for $2.3 bln
July 21 (Reuters) - Romania has signed a framework agreement to buy Israeli-made Shorad-Vshorad anti-aircraft systems for more than 2 billion euros ($2.3 billion), the Romanian defence ministry said on Monday. Under pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump, Romania and other European countries have been looking to increase their defence spending since Russia's full-scale invasion of neighbouring Ukraine in 2022. The European Union and NATO member state, which shares a 650 km (400 mile) border with Ukraine, has had Russian drone fragments fall onto its territory repeatedly over the past two years as Moscow attacks Ukrainian port infrastructure. The framework agreement with the Israeli company Rafael Advanced Defense Systems - maker with U.S. backing of Israel's Iron Dome defence system - provides for the signing of three further contracts, through which six integrated anti-aircraft systems will be acquired. The contracts will also cover training, ammunition and logistical support. The framework agreement will run for seven years, with the first two Vshorad systems to be delivered within three years of the signing of the first of the three further contracts, the ministry said. ($1 = 0.8564 euros)
Arab News
3 days ago
- Business
- Arab News
Romania to buy Israeli air defense systems for nearly $2.3 billion
BUCHAREST: Romania announced Monday it has signed a deal with an Israeli company to buy six anti-aircraft systems, as the NATO member and Ukraine neighbor looks to boost its defense posture. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Romania has gained in strategic importance and exposure to defense risks, with Russian drone fragments regularly falling on its soil. Under a framework agreement signed with Israeli defense company Rafael Advanced Defense Systems last week, Romania is set to purchase six integrated Shorad-Vshorad anti-aircraft systems for more than two billion euros ($2.3 billion). Israel's Iron Dome air defense system is one of Rafael's best-known products. According to the deal, three further contracts will need to be signed under the framework agreement, which runs for seven years. The procurement deal, which was rubber-stamped by Romania's parliament in 2020, 'aims to equip the army with advanced weapon systems designed to protect against air threats, including drones and cruise missiles,' the eastern European country's defense ministry said in a statement. In a recent interview on public television, Defense Minister Ionut Mosteanu likened the anti-aircraft systems to 'the Iron Dome... when the Iranians attack,' saying 'that's Shorad-Vshorad and it protects Tel Aviv.' In 2024, Romania signed a deal with the United States to purchase 32 F-35 fighter jets for an estimated $6.5 billion. The Black Sea nation has been striving for years to bolster its defense forces and replace its aging Soviet-era equipment.
Russia Today
6 days ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
German left criticizes Trump's Patriot plan
The US plan to funnel Patriot anti-aircraft systems to Ukraine through European NATO members may create 'strong profit prospects' for the American military-industrial complex but does nothing to pave the way to ending the conflict between Moscow and Kiev, the German Die Linke (The Left) party's parliamentary leader, Ulrich Thoden, has said. US President Donald Trump unveiled a plan to send American-made weapons to Ukraine during a meeting with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte on Monday, with European NATO members footing the bill. The US president also said 'several nations' were ready to dispatch Patriot anti-aircraft systems from their own arsenals. Thoden criticized the plan, suggesting that the US should supply Kiev with the systems on its own rather than force European NATO members to either pay for them or further deplete their own dwindling arsenals. 'The US military has a sufficient number of Patriot air defense systems, and a free-of-charge transfer of a limited number would be easily feasible without compromising its own defense capability,' Thoden stated. Delivering these weapons will neither end the war nor ensure a Ukrainian victory, the politician warned. It would be better for Kiev's backers to focus on providing Ukraine with debt relief, while imposing more sanctions on Russia, Thoden suggested. Moscow has condemned the flow of Western-made weaponry to Ukraine, arguing that military aid only prolongs the conflict without having any impact on its ultimate outcome. Russia is unfazed by Trump's new scheme, as the flow of American weaponry to Kiev never actually stopped, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated. 'Many words have been said… It is a fact that arms supplies from the US have continued and continue to be supplied to Ukraine,' Peskov has said.
Russia Today
14-06-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Russia tests new laser weapons (VIDEO)
Russia has successfully tested eight anti-aircraft laser systems, the government said on Friday. They were designed specifically to tackle drone threats, the statement added. The trials were attended by senior Russian officials, including Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov. The tests were conducted at specialized proving grounds and organized by Russia's Military-Industrial Commission and Ministry of Industry and Trade. 'During the tests, the accuracy of guidance, range of destruction, reaction speed of the systems to moving air targets, and resistance to various weather conditions were checked,' the Russian government said in its statement. Eight new weapons, ranging from 'compact mobile devices to stationary high-power systems,' were tested during the trials. The laser weapons faced assorted targets, including small-sized commercial drones and 'more complex devices simulating reconnaissance and attack drones,' the Kremlin said. Footage of the trials shows drones getting shot out of the sky by laser beams and crashing into the ground. The video also features the destroyed targets put on display, with some of the drones appearing to bear distinct burn marks. All the systems featured at the test performed as advertised by their manufacturers, the statement noted. It also said that the trials proved 'the correctness of the chosen direction for the development of integrated defense systems' to protect critical infrastructure facilities from UAVs. The trials pave the way to mass production of the relevant systems and to scaling the solutions displayed by the manufacturers, it added. Attempts to create laser-based weaponry, including anti-aircraft systems, have been repeatedly made by many nations. Most combat laser systems however, never made it past the prototype stage, being plagued by assorted operational and technical issues, including too short a range and dependency on high-output power sources. The conflict between Russia and Ukraine, where cheap mass-produced drones have become a key tool for both battlefield use and long-range strikes, has apparently given a new impetus to the development of laser-based systems. In recent months, several countries, including Ukraine, India, and Israel, have unveiled new weapons of the type.
Russia Today
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Over 80k aerial targets shot down during conflict with Ukraine
Russian forces have shot down more than 80,000 aerial targets during the conflict with Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin has revealed, adding that the country is seeking to create a universal anti-aircraft system capable of intercepting any incoming projectile. Putin made the remarks on Thursday while meeting with senior civilian and military officials to discuss Russia's armament plans for the period between 2027 and 2036. The conflict with Ukraine has been marked by the rapid development of aerial weaponry, the evolution of its role and the tactics of its use, Putin noted. 'The new state armament program should ensure the creation of a universal air defense system that is capable of operating in any conditions and effectively destroying aerial strike weapons regardless of their type,' the president stated. The 80,000 figure includes some 7,500 sophisticated munitions, such as tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and projectiles fired by multiple rocket launchers, Putin noted, adding that nearly all such weapons destroyed had been supplied to Kiev by the West. However, drones constitute the vast majority of aerial targets intercepted during the conflict. According to the latest figures by the Russian Defense Ministry, more than 63,000 Ukrainian UAVs of all types have been destroyed amid the hostilities. 'The fight against various types of unmanned aerial vehicles required new approaches and non-standard solutions. This field remains particularly relevant,' the president stressed.
