Photo: DPA / Bundeswehr
A letter of intent to cooperate with Raytheon on a Polish missile defense program has been signed by the state-run defense group of Poland, PGZ. This will pave the way for Poland’s acquisition of Patriot missiles, PGZ reported.
“The signed letter of intent positions the Polish industry as an important component of the Global Patriot program, including the transfer of key technologies. It also opens the doors to the Polish industry to enable its participation in the modernization programs of 220 Patriot systems operated by 13 countries,” PGZ said.
Polish Defence Minister Antoni Macierewicz has praised this move and said that this cooperation will have a big impact on Ministry plans to acquire an air and anti-missile defense system.
“The letter of intent means that the company and partner which are most likely to implement the Polish missile defense system are Raytheon and the US government,” the Defence Minister told the PAP news agency.
Poland’s leading state-run defense group PGZ, consisting of more than 60 companies with a workforce of 17,500, was created in 2013. The main function of the group is to consolidate fragmented state-owned defense industry of Poland. The main shareholder of PGZ is the Polish Ministry of Treasury but the group submits to the Polish Ministry of Defence. The total annual income of PGZ is about 5 billion zloty (US $1.26 billion).