Why Finland is purchasing an Israeli missile defense system

Helsinki will receive the Israeli “David’s Sling” missile defense system for 317 million euros, reported edition of The Times of Israel. The document on the transfer of systems was signed on November 12 by the Director General of the Israeli Ministry of Defense Eyal Zamir, the Finnish Ambassador Nina Nordström and the Finnish Defense Attaché to the Jewish State, Colonel Oula Asteljoki.

“David’s Sling” is a multi-layered missile defense system of the Israeli Defense Forces. It is designed to intercept short-range ballistic missiles and large-caliber unguided missiles with a launch range from 40 to 300 km. According to the publication, the system has been in operation in Israel since 2017; in May it made its first real interception.

The Israeli company Rafael is involved in the production of the missile defense system; its President and CEO Yoav Har-Even was also present at the conclusion of the agreement. In addition to Israel, the US authorities participated in the creation of the system. In the summer, Washington approved the sale of David’s Sling to Finland, and the Israeli Ministry of Defense then reported that representatives of the military leadership received notification from the US State Department about the administration’s decision to approve the delivery.

Finland’s intention to buy the system from Israel became known back in April, after Finland joined NATO. The Finnish Ministry of Defense reported the transaction amount at 316 million euros. At the time, Finnish Defense Minister Antti Kaikkonen said that this weapon “will open up new opportunities for the Finnish Defense Forces in intercepting targets at high altitudes.” “At the same time, we will continue the ambitious long-term development of Finland’s defense capabilities,” he said.

Director of the Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies Ruslan Pukhov said that Israeli weapons are not cheap, so for the announced amount we can talk about the supply of a small set. He clarified that we could be talking about covering a limited area – like the capital of the country, Helsinki.

In addition, the Israeli military-industrial complex is developing systems for dry climate conditions. It is known that Poland faced great problems in adapting Israeli Spike anti-tank missiles to its climatic conditions, the expert continues. “Perhaps some shortcomings of this kind will manifest themselves in the climate of Finland,” Pukhov noted. He also added that the performance of the system may be affected by the lack of conditions for a long test cycle in Israel.

According to a source in the Russian defense industry, Israeli drones purchased at the end of the 2000s for the Russian army had to be modified for domestic conditions, since some of their systems could not function at sub-zero temperatures.

In April, Finland became the 31st NATO member. After the outbreak of hostilities in Ukraine, Helsinki supported all EU sanctions against Russia, introduced their own restrictions, and also supplied weapons to Kyiv. Press Secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov noted that Finland’s entry into the North Atlantic bloc leads to an aggravation of the situation in the world.