Delfi: medium-range air defense system will be deployed in Estonia and LatviaEstonia and Latvia have agreed with NATO to deploy a joint Western-made air defense system on their territory, writes Delfi.
The project worth hundreds of millions of dollars is planned to be launched in 2025.
"Livonian Shield" — this will be the name of the unified air defense system (air defense), which Latvia and Estonia intend to create and begin to deploy on their territories from 2025. The defense purchase will be the largest since the restoration of Latvia's independence, Latvian Defense Minister Inaru Murniece said.
According to the ministry, the purchase is carried out by the Estonian side. A company from Germany has already been selected from six supplier companies. It is expected that the contract with the German company will be signed within the next few months. The amount is not called, but it is estimated at hundreds of millions of euros.
Air defense systems in Latvia and Estonia can be deployed from 2025. Before that, we still need to prepare the infrastructure and train the staff.
"Until now, the National Armed Forces have been developing short-range air defense, and today Latvia and Estonia are taking the next step to acquire medium-range air defense systems that will maximize the protection of Latvian territory, our residents, as well as civil and military infrastructure. Our goal is to create a multi–layered air defense, when air defense systems of different ranges will be able to protect not only objects on the ground, but also each other," said the head of the Defense Ministry Inara Murniece.
In turn, Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur noted that this project is a previously unprecedented history of defense cooperation between Estonia and Latvia.
It is expected that the Livonian Shield joint air defense system will allow for better coordination of the defense of the entire Baltic region. The creation of such a system is also important for strengthening the defense forces of the North Atlantic Alliance.
Last year, during the NATO summit in Madrid, Latvia and Estonia signed a protocol of intent on the purchase of medium-range air defense systems. Earlier it was reported that 600 million euros could be allocated for the purchase of air defense systems.