Sweden acquires German air defence systems for $930m

STOCKHOLM: Sweden´s government on Monday announced that it was buying German-made air defence systems for nine billion kronor ($930 million), as the Nordic country has begun ramping up defence spending.

The IRIS-T SLM, made by Germany´s Diehl, is a medium range air defence missile system. “This air defence system is the first we are acquiring and perhaps one of the most important capabilities Sweden has acquired since our Patriot purchase in the 1990s,” Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson told a press conference.

Speaking alongside Kristersson, Defence Minister Pal Jonsson said that the war in Ukraine had been an “eye opener for the importance of a strong air defence”. Kristersson said the investment was part of “the rapid rearmament that is already under way.”