U.S. Approves Sale of Patriot System to Bahrain

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The United States State Department has approved the possible military sale of the Patriot air and missile defense system to Bahrain. The contract is estimated to be worth $2.5 billion.

Bahrain would be among 16 other countries, including the United States, to operate the Patriot defense system.

The U.S. Congress was notified of the sale last week and they are in charge of approving the sale, as well as deciding on the quantity of items and costs.

Defensenews.com reports that deal would include 60 Patriot Advanced Capability-3 Missile Segment Enhancement missiles, 36 Patriot MIM-104E Guidance Enhanced Missiles with canisters, 9 M903 Launchers, 2 AN/MPQ-65 radar sets, as well as the control stations and other relevant equipment.

Other owners of the Patriot air and missile defense system include Romania, Poland, Sweden, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates.

Along the sale to Bahrain, the United States also approved the possible sale of 452 PAC-3 MSE missiles and its related equipment to the UAE. This sale is expected to be valued at $2.7 billion.

Raytheon, the Patriot’s developer, has seen a rise in Patriot customers over the past few years. With a sum value of about $18 billion, many of these customers are European.

Poland is expected to spend about $10.5 billion for the Patriot system, whereas Sweden is expected to pay roughly $3.2 billion.