Israel has been working for several months to convince the United States to allow it to sell the "Hats 3" missile defense system to Germany and other countries.
The initial request of the Germans was brought up by German Chancellor, Olaf Schulz, in his meeting with former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, in their meeting about six months ago in Israel.
Arrow 3 test in Alaska, photo: Ministry of Defense spokesperson
Following the meeting, Defense Minister Benny Gantz and other officials contacted the government several times, asking for its approval for the deal.
That's because 80 percent of the Arrow system's development costs, estimated at $2.2 billion, were paid for by the American taxpayer.
In addition, it includes technological components developed in the USA. It should be noted that the price of a single 'Arrow' missile is three million dollars.
Forwarded several requests to the US. Gantz, photo: US Central Command, Sgt. John Onuoha
The Americans have not yet responded to the Israeli request, neither positively nor negatively.
The assessment in Israel is that if there was no opposition among government officials, the deal would have been approved a long time ago.
On the other hand, the fact that the request was not refused, leads Israeli officials to estimate that in the end, a green light will be received from Washington.
The Experiment in Arrow 3 // Photo: Spokesperson and Information Division at the Ministry of Defense
The German Chancellor surprised Prime Minister Yair Lapid this week, when he said publicly that his country is interested in the Israeli system.
"The Russian aggression (in Ukraine) is a declaration of a turning point for our defense. I arranged a special budget of 100 billion euros for investments in the security of Germany and its neighbors. We also want to work with Israel, for example in the field of air defense where Israel has a powerful offer of the Three Arrow system ".
Lapid did not like Schultz's public and explicit reference to the Israeli missiles.
"In response to the question of whether I can say anything more about the Three Arrow system, the short answer is that I cannot," the Prime Minister replied to a question presented to him last Monday, at a press briefing in Berlin.
He presented his worldview that democracies should have the power to defend themselves against aggression and said "I hope that was vague enough."
The German request came up at the Bennett and Schulz meeting in Israel, photo: GettyImages, Eric Sultan
The Bloomberg agency reported last week that Germany looked into the possibility of purchasing anti-missile missiles of the THAAD type, which are produced by the American Lockheed Martin.
This system is considered a competitor of the Arrow, but according to many it is significantly less good than the Israeli one.
According to the Bloomberg report, this is also the German conclusion and therefore their request to purchase the arrow is still valid.
At this stage, the US is avoiding an answer to the Israeli-German request. The Americans have a long history of holding back advanced Israeli technologies, which compete with the American defense industry. This includes, among other things, the torpedoing of the Halvea project in the 1980s, a ban on the sale of early warning systems of the 'Falcon' type in the 1980s 90s and 2000s and an investigation against the Israeli cyber company NSO these days, and more.
However, in view of the proven Russian aggression and Germany being a central anchor in the defense of Europe against it, the Americans may withdraw their opposition.
Israel estimates that if American approval is received to sell the 'Arrow' to Germany, other European countries will also seek to buy the Israeli system, which is considered the most advanced of its kind in the world.
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