WARSAW, Poland — As numerous Eastern European allies are accelerating acquisitions of weaponry in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Croatia’s announced an “urgent procurement of short-range anti-aircraft missile systems.”

The acquisition of Mistral surface-to-air missiles, made by MBDA Missile Systems, is valued at close to €72 million ($76 million). It is to be financed from the Croatian budget in the 2024 to 2026 period, the government said in a statement.

“The circumstances of the Russian Federation’s aggression against Ukraine and the crash of an unmanned aerial vehicle in Zagreb demonstrated that it is necessary to adjust the priorities and acquisition plans of the Croatian military,” said Croatian Defense Minister Mario Banožić. “For this reason, the procurement of a short-range anti-aircraft missile system was set as the highest gear acquisition priority in the short term.”

Banožić was referring to the March 2022 crash of a Soviet-era drone that carried explosives through the airspaces of fellow NATO members Romania and Hungary before crashing in a park in Croatia’s capital. Ukraine and Russia have both rejected responsibility for the UAV which the Croatian authorities believe came from Ukraine.

“The procurement includes the delivery of Mistral 3 missiles and a short-range system launcher with the latest thermal imaging camera, an encrypted electronic target identification system, and a command and control coordination kit,” the government statement said. “A package of integrated logistics support, staff training and technical support of manufacturers is also provided.”

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• Source: https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2022/12/12/croatian-government-approves-urgent-acquisition-of-mistral-missiles/