Romania has selected Rafael Advanced Defense Systems to supply its new Very Short and Short Range Air Defense (V/SHORAD) system under a contract valued at 1.9 billion euros ($2.23 billion). The Romanian Ministry of National Defence confirmed that Rafael was awarded the project after a competitive evaluation managed by the national arms procurement agency.
The contract is now pending formal finalization through the signing of a framework agreement, with no appeals filed by competing bidders following the announcement of results. The procurement process, initiated in 2023, stems from a 2020 parliamentary approval.
According to reports, Rafael’s Spyder system—which deploys Python-5 and Derby interceptor missiles with respective ranges of 40 km and 80 km—was the likely offering. Other international firms, including MBDA, Diehl Defence, and South Korea’s LIG Nex1, were eliminated during earlier phases of the selection process.
This marks Israel’s second-largest defense export to date, following the record-setting Arrow 3 system sale to Germany.
