American arms giant Raytheon – the world’s second-largest arms manufacturer – will continue to invest in European production of air defense systems, including its sought-after Patriot system.

Euractiv writes about this .

As stated by Tom Laliberti, head of Raytheon’s ground and air defense systems division, the company is currently seeing a sharp increase in orders for both the defense of the European Union and for shipment to Ukraine , and this is prompting Raytheon to even deeper cooperation with arms manufacturers based in the EU and Ukraine.

Laliberti said Raytheon is now planning further expansion in Europe .

He added that while there may be talk in Europe of moving away from US defence suppliers, Patriot systems have never been in such high demand, with decades-long waiting lists for deliveries. Countries such as Germany and Switzerland have recently signed large orders.

“We are working with our supply chains to increase production capacity,” Laliberti said, adding that the new European plants are key to meeting high demand for the Patriot and other Raytheon weapons.

According to Laliberti, the investment in German manufacturing facilities with partner MDBA Deutschland, made in response to orders from European NATO allies to produce up to 1,000 additional Patriot missiles, means Raytheon will be able to double global production of interceptor missiles by 2028 or 2030.

The American manufacturer not only produces missiles, but also already operates maintenance facilities for Patriot systems. Raytheon also co-produces certain equipment, such as NASAMS air defense missiles, with Norwegian defense contractor Kongsberg.

Laliberti added that Raytheon is open to developing business relationships with contractors from the EU .

In addition, Raytheon sees new business opportunities in Ukraine .

“The main discussion with the Ukrainian customer is how best to get them the systems as quickly as possible. We continue to talk to their industry about what they can do to participate in the production and support of the systems they have and hopefully the new systems they will receive,” Laliberti noted.

It was previously reported that the Czech defense company Czechoslovak Group has almost completed the construction of an artillery shell production line in Ukraine.

In February of this year, it was reported that shares of the German arms concern Rheinmetall had risen 10 times in price since the start of the full-scale war unleashed by Russia.

It was previously reported that the holding company Porsche SE, which owns shares in Volkswagen (31.4%) and Porsche (25%), may return to the defense business .

Author:  Halyna Yalivets Джерело: https://censor.net/n3558861

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