Fifteen countries sign NATO air defense pact, including the Netherlands

The Netherlands and more than a dozen other countries will combine their defenses against aircraft and missiles. The agreement will make air defense stronger and cheaper, said the Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren. The allies will jointly purchase Patriot and Arrow 3 missiles as part of the plan.

The deal was signed by 14 NATO allies, as well as Finland. ”Spearheaded by Germany, the initiative aims to create a European air and missile defence system through the common acquisition of air defence equipment and missiles by European nations,” NATO said in a statement on Thursday.

Aside from the Netherlands, Germany, and Finland the United Kingdom and Belgium also signed the letter of intent. The other nations involved include Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia. The participants signed the European Sky Shield at the NATO headquarters in Brussels on Thursday morning.

The initiative is necessary to plug holes in the European air defense, said German Minister Christine Lambrecht said. She pointed out that “we live in times of great threat.” Lambrecht expects other NATO countries to join soon because “there is a lot of interest in this.”

“This commitment is even more crucial today, as we witness the ruthless and indiscriminate missile attacks by Russia in Ukraine, killing civilians and destroying critical infrastructure. In this context, I strongly welcome Germany’s leadership in launching the European Sky Shield Initiative,” said NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană. “The new assets, fully interoperable and seamlessly integrated within the NATO air and missile defence, would significantly enhance our ability to defend the Alliance from all air and missile threats.”

Ollongren called it an “important initiative to improve European air defense through increased European cooperation. With all the advantages of standardization, interoperability, and economies of scale.”