European allies team up to buy Polish portable anti-aircraft systems

WARSAW, Poland — Poland, Norway, Lithuania and Latvia have signed a framework agreement to buy Piorun (Thunderbolt) man-portable air defense systems from Polish state-run defense group PGZ under a deal worth more than 8 billion zloty ($2.2 billion). The acquisition covers “several thousand missiles and several hundred launch units,” PGZ said in a statement. Deliveries of the group’s flagship weapon are to be completed by 2030, with Poland serving as the consortium’s leader. On Poland’s side, the procurement will be financed from the European Union’s Security Action For Europe (SAFE) scheme which foresees around €43.7 billion ($50.9 billion) in low-cost loans for Warsaw. More than 80% of the acquired gear is to be delivered to the Polish military. “Not only are we implementing this agreement through the Polish defense industry, but our partners from Lithuania, Latvia and Norway have also decided to make purchases in Poland,” Deputy Defence Minister Magdalena Sobkowiak-Czarnecka said. “For the first time, the Armament Agency is making purchases not only for the Polish Armed Forces, but also for the armed forces of our allies.” Building on the weapon’s successful use in Ukraine and the resulting international demand for the Piorun, PGZ officials say that, over the past several years, the group has increased its dedicated missile production capacity from 300 to 1,500 units annually, with plans to reach a capacity of more than 2,000 missiles per year. Amid the weapon’s increasing …