NATO Supports Group of European Countries to Purchase Approximately 1000 Patriot Missiles

NATO indicated today, Wednesday, that "the alliance's procurement agency will support a group of member countries including Germany, the Netherlands, Romania, and Spain, with a contract to purchase up to 1000 Patriot missiles for air defense." The military alliance stated in a release: "The agency has awarded the production and delivery contract to Kongsberg, a joint project between Raytheon and MBDA." It added that European production of the missiles will expand. The statement continued: "The joint procurement by several countries, under the European Sky Shield Initiative, provides significant economies of scale and supports the expansion of the production capacity for the new GEM-T missiles to meet increasing demand."