Finland will buy a key component of its air defence network from neighbouring Sweden, the Ministry of Defence announced on Friday.
Minister of Defence Antti Häkkänen (NCP) says the Finnish Defence Forces (FDF) will buy short-range RBS 70 NG ground-based air defence (GBAD) systems from the Sweden's Saab Bofors Dynamics.
In a statement, he said the deal will "strengthen the areal coverage of GBAD across Finland".
Bracing for "a full range of threats"
The RBS 70 NG is an advanced version of the Saab ITO05M mobile surface-to-air missile system, which the FDF has used for more than 20 years. The new system will improve Finland’s capabilities to counter both unmanned and manned aerial vehicles, the ministry says.
"We are developing Finland’s air defence system against a full range of threats. Safeguarding our preparedness requires appropriate and modern systems for each type of threat. This procurement is only one component of a larger package," Häkkänen said in the statement.
Regular personnel, conscripts and reservists will be trained mainly by the Salpausselkä Air Defence Battalion of the Karelia Brigade, based in Vekaranjärvi, Kouvola.
The procurement, including munitions, training equipment and a maintenance system, is worth some 108 million euros without taxes. It is to be fully up and running by the end of the 2020s, i.e., within the next three years.
