In a celebratory ceremony held today (25.03.2021), at the Slovak Ministry of Defense in Bratislava, Slovak National Armaments Director, Mr. Zekucia and Head of the Directorate of International Defense Cooperation (SIBAT), in the Israel Ministry of Defense, Brig. Gen. (Res.), Yair Kulas, signed a first-of-its-kind agreement between the two countries for the procurement of 17 IAI radars. The agreement includes the transfer of technology and knowledge from Israel to Slovakia, as well as industrial cooperation. The radar components will be manufactured in collaboration with defense industries in Slovakia, under the professional guidance of IAI and the Ministry of Defense.
Minister of Defense of the Slovak Republic, Jaroslav NaÄ: “First and foremost, I would like to express my appreciation to Israeli representatives for taking a truly pragmatic approach to the negotiations on the procurement of the new 3D radar systems for our Slovak Air Force. These expert discussions have always been of very high quality, resulting in the final Agreement with satisfaction on both sides. At the same time, I highly value the positive impact of this cooperation on the bilateral ties between our countries in the field of defense and security and I do believe we now have a solid basis for our next cooperation.”
Defense Minister, Benny Gantz: “Today we have reached a significant milestone in the growing cooperation between Israeli and Slovak defense industries. The new agreement first and foremost provides Slovakia with high-quality, advanced systems to maintain their national security, while also strengthening defense industries and creating many new jobs in Israel and Slovakia. I would like to thank my friend, the Slovak Minister of Defense, Jaroslav Nad’, for promoting this agreement, and for expressing confidence in the ‘blue and white’ [Israeli] industry.”
IAI VP, and ELTA CEO Yoav Tourgeman: “The signing today with Slovakia signifies significant cooperation between our two countries. IAI will provide Slovakia with radar systems and advanced air defense technology, about 150 of which have been sold to various nations. In addition, we will cooperate with Slovakian industries to develop and integrate into the local Slovakian economy, through joint-development of the radars. IAI is proud to provide Slovakia with this advanced technology and be an important part of Europe’s air defense solutions, including supporting and integrating into NATO activities.
The flagship MMR Radar, manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) subsidiary, ELTA systems, will provide the Slovak defense establishment with a complete aerial situational assessment. The radar detects airborne threats, classifies them, calculates their threat level and provides essential data that enables systems to neutralize multiple threats simultaneously. In addition, these radar systems will be interoperable with NATO defense mechanisms.ELTA’s ELM-2084 is a mobile S-Band Multi-Mission Radar (MMR) family featuring an advanced 3D Active Electronically Steered Array (AESA) for Air Defense (AD) and Artillery Weapon Location (WLR) missions.
In the AD mode, the radar detects and classifies all types of airborne targets and generates a real-time Air Situation Picture (ASP). The WLR mode detects incoming mortars, artillery shells, and missiles and informs hostile weapon firing location as well as real-time calculation of impact point and friendly fire ranging. In addition, the Fire Control Radar (FCR) functionality enables control via uplink to anti-missile interception systems and Surface-to-Air (SAM) missile systems. Several versions of the radar were purchased and are operated by a number of armies, including the Israel Defense Forces, Canadian Army, Republic of Singapore Air Force, and the Army of the Czech Republic.
