The French Defense Minister and his counterparts from Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia and Hungary signed a letter of intent (LoI) for the joint acquisition of the Mistral 3 ground-based air defense system on June 19, 2023.
Led by the French Ministry of Defense with the support of MBDA, the intent is to implement a joint acquisition of Mistral 3 by the Direction Générale de l'Armement (DGA) on behalf of all partner countries.
In the current geostrategic context on the borders of Europe, this initiative is a concrete example of the will of the European Council to strengthen the defense capabilities of the European Union and its member states through cooperation.
A joint procurement could benefit from the support of the European Union and allow economies of scale, so as to incentivize Member States to jointly procure defense products, while strengthening the competitiveness of the European Defense Technological Industrial and Technological Base (EDTIB). and Industrial Base).
Eric Béranger, CEO of MBDA, said: “Cooperation is at the heart of MBDA's DNA and I strongly believe that together we are stronger. This signature and our plans to double the Mistral's annual production capacity underscore the company's continued commitment to projects that underpin the European defense agenda.".
Mistral 3, currently in service with the French Armed Forces, is an air defense missile equipped with an infrared image seeker and advanced image processing capabilities. It can engage low thermal signature targets such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), turbojet missiles, and long-range fast fighters. It also offers excellent resistance to countermeasures.
