Romania is to buy Patriot air defence systems, related support and equipment from the United States.
According to the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency:
“The Government of Romania has requested the possible sale of seven (7) Patriot Configuration-3+ Modernized Fire Units consisting of: seven (7) AN/MPQ-65 radar sets, seven (7) AN/MSQ-132 engagement control stations, thirteen (13) antenna mast groups, twenty-eight (28) M903 launching stations, fifty-six (56) Patriot MIM-104E Guidance Enhanced Missile-TBM (GEM-T) missiles, one hundred and sixty-eight (168) Patriot Advanced Capabilty-3 (PAC-3) Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) missiles, and seven (7) Electrical Power Plants (EPP) III.
Also included with this request are communications equipment, tools and test equipment, support equipment, prime movers, generators, publications and technical documentation, training equipment, spare and repair parts, personnel training, TAFT team, U.S. Government and contractor technical, engineering, and logistics support services, Systems Integration and Checkout (SICO), field office support, and other related elements of logistics and program support.
This proposed sale will enhance the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by helping to improve the security of a NATO ally that has been, and continues to be an important force for political stability and economic progress within Europe. The proposed sale of the Patriot system will support Romania’s needs for its own self-defense and support NATO defense goals.”
Romania will, the agency says, use the Patriot missile system to strengthen its homeland defence and deter regional threats.
“The proposed sale will increase the defensive capabilities of the Romanian military to guard against aggression and shield the NATO allies who often train and operate within Romania’s borders. Romania should have no difficulty absorbing this system into its armed forces.”
The total estimated program cost is $3.9 billion.
This is an enormous commitment by Romania.
To put it in context, their defence budget for 2016 was $2.8bn.
IMHO, I’m not that keen on the PAC-3.
It is rather short ranged and by design performs poorly against aircraft, sacrificing this ability to be better at ballistic missile defence.
If they wanted purely a anti-aircraft capability then something like NASAMS-2 with the AIM-120-ER would be better range, and a lot cheaper.
(They put the motor from the sea-sparrow naval SAM with the AMRAAM seeker)
I wonder whether your two observations (a lot of money for Romania and NASAMS-2 would have been better) are very directly related. Perhaps the USA is funding some or all of this on the condition that it is US technology. NASAMS, coming from Kongsberg, might be seen as not US enough. This is how it works for some of Israel’s military spending. One of my customers in the old days was the Israeli military and I was once asked in a meeting with a project boss in Tel Aviv about the American-ness of what I was selling and was told… Read more »
My guess is that it will be funded by military aid, but I can’t find anything to that.
It seems aid amounts in the past were very small.
NASAMS is very American.
American missiles
American radar
American fire control.
It’s just the seller is Norwegian.
But American enough to be guarding the airspace in Washington DC
Huge commitment from Romania. Yet despite a vast sum of money they are initially only getting circa 210 missiles. Most of the purchase is the hardware of the patriot system. Further missile orders will follow. Romania has just develop a unique NATO capability and one that few of NATOs powers possess. That of theatre ballistic air defence. This is what NATO and the EU countries within NATO should be doing. Develop unique capabilities that when joined with others nations capabilities deliver a powerful multi layered, full spectrum force. EU however will never gets it house in order. To bothered worrying… Read more »
From a fellow Romanian citizen, I really want this country to be a little more secure and we really respect our western allies and I know this costs money however I assure you we as a nation we rather starve to death than be occupied by you know who and to tell you why most of us think this way … I have a little true story to say … During the time when the soviets passed through our country my grandmother was almost raped by some bastard soldiers after everything from the house was stolen but she was lucky… Read more »
just try to explain why russians would invade Romania, first.. then we can speak
How long before the thaad systems get sold or deployed to nato countries! After all USA took them out to South Korea, deployed them there against Nk. Only drawback was China and Russia moaned about the system being able to monitor within Russia and Chinas borders!