Estonia, Belgium, Cyprus, France, and Hungary signed a cooperation agreement to jointly procure Mistral short-range air defense missile systems.

The Ministry of Defense of Estonia reported this on Tuesday, June 20.

The cooperation agreement authorizes France to conduct the joint procurement of the Mistral MANPADS on behalf of all participating countries.

The joint procurement allows Estonia to save costs and expedite delivery.

“I am very pleased that we are cooperating with our strategic partner, France, to develop Estonia’s air defense capability, which has been demonstrated to be crucial due to Russia’s aggression in Ukraine,” Hanno Pevkur, Estonian Defence Minister, noted.

He also added that the participation of Belgium, Cyprus, and Hungary adds value to the cooperation agreement by enabling cost savings and faster delivery of the short-range air defense missile systems.

As part of the joint agreement, this fall, it is planned to reach a supply agreement with the European defense company MBDA, which is a manufacturer of Mistral MANPADS.

Specifically, Estonia aims to acquire missiles for its Mistral short-range air defense system launchers, which have been in service with the Defense Forces since 2009.

Mistral MANPADS

Mistral is a man-portable anti-aircraft missile system designed to hit targets at low altitudes. Its short-range anti-aircraft guided missiles are equipped with an infrared homing head.

The MANPADS system includes an air-tight transport and launch container, a tripod for its sighting devices, “friend or foe” identification, and a power source.

The most modern version of the Mistral 3 system provides interception of a wide range of air targets at distances between 0.5 and 7.5 km and altitudes up to 3 km in difficult weather conditions and at any time of the day.

The Mistral MANPADS is actively exported, and its various versions are in service with the armed forces and navies of 30 countries.