Romania has signed a framework agreement to purchase Israeli-made Shorad-Vshorad air defense systems worth more than two billion euros, the Romanian Defense Ministry said on Monday.
Under pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump, Romania and other European countries are seeking to increase defense spending against a full-scale Russian invasion of neighboring Ukraine in 2022.
The European Union and NATO member, which shares a 650-kilometer border with Ukraine, has repeatedly seen fragments of Russian drones fall on its territory in the past two years as Moscow attacks Ukrainian port infrastructure.
The framework agreement with Israeli company Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, the U.S.-backed manufacturer of Israel’s Iron Dome defense system, provides for the signing of three more contracts, through which six integrated air defense systems will be purchased.
The contracts will also include training, ammunition and logistical support. The framework agreement will be valid for seven years, and the first two Vshorad systems will be delivered within three years of the signing of the first of three additional contracts, the ministry said.
