US Approves $1 Billion Missile Sales to Two NATO Countries

The United States has approved the sales of advanced missiles to NATO members Norway and Romania that are collectively worth almost $1 billion.

The Pentagon's Defense Security Cooperation Agency said on August 22 that Washington had approved the sales to Romania and Norway of AIM-120 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missiles and related equipment worth an estimated $592 million and $405 million, respectively.

News of the sales come as tensions between Russia and NATO have heightened throughout President Vladimir Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which began in February 2022. Moscow has accused the alliance of involvement in the war by providing Kyiv with military assistance and weapons, and Russian officials have floated the idea of striking member states in retaliation.

Several members of the NATO military alliance have adopted measures to prepare for the possibility of war with Russia.

For instance, Germany confirmed it was developing emergency plans to move "hundreds of thousands" of NATO troops across its territory in the event of a war with Russia, Newsweek previously reported.

The Baltic states—Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia—also signed an agreement in January to create a common defense line with "anti-mobility infrastructure elements" to bolster NATO's eastern border with Russia and Belarus, Putin's ally.

Anti-tank concrete pyramids, known as "dragon's teeth," are being installed along Latvia's border with Russia. Dragon's teeth, first used during World War II, are made of reinforced concrete and are used to impede the advances of tanks and mechanized infantry.

Meanwhile, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters in June that the military alliance has more than 500,000 troops on high readiness, meaning forces could be deployed within 30 days.

Newsweek has contacted the Russian Foreign Ministry for comment via email.

Sale of the weapons to Romania will improve its capability "to meet current and future threats by further equipping Romania to conduct self-defense and regional security missions while enhancing interoperability with the United States and other NATO members," the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a statement.

"Romania already has AMRAAMs in its inventory and will have no difficulty absorbing these articles and services into its armed forces," the agency continued.

The sale will also "improve Norway's capability to meet current and future threats by supplementing and replacing Air Intercept Missile 120B (AIM-120B) AMRAAMs with the more capable AMRAAM-ER," it added.

"The newly acquired missiles will be used for ground-based air defense in the Norwegian Advanced Surface to Air Missile System (NASAMS)," the agency said. "Norway already has AMRAAMs in its inventory and will have no difficulty absorbing these articles into its armed forces."

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