Czech Republic has proposed creating European "Iron Dome" to defend against ballistic missiles
Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš has proposed that European countries create a joint missile defense system called "Euro Patriot." According to his plan, it could be built based on the experience of Israel's multi-layered air and missile defense system.
According to Censor.NET, citing EFE, , Babiš made this statement on September 17 during the opening of the Prague Defense Summit.
"We must learn from the war in Ukraine and seek solutions, especially in the area of ballistic missile defense," the Czech prime minister said.
Babiš noted that Russia is using ballistic missiles—the "Iskander" and "Kinzhal"—against Ukraine, and that Ukraine's capabilities to intercept them remain limited. Among the systems capable of countering ballistic missiles, he mentioned the American Patriot.
They want to build "Euro Patriot" based on the European model
Speaking about Israel's "Iron Dome," Babiš said he would like to convince European partners to focus on creating a similar joint project.
The Israeli system is part of a multi-layered air and missile defense architecture. Its various components are designed to intercept targets of different types and ranges, including missile threats. Solutions based on laser technology are being developed separately.
Babiš compared the project to Airbus
The Czech prime minister believes that the implementation of "Euro Patriot" could strengthen Europe's contribution to NATO and support the defense industries of allied countries.
Babiš cited the creation of Airbus as an example. According to him, the pooling of European countries’ capabilities and long-term commitments made it possible to carry out a large-scale joint aircraft manufacturing project.
At the same time, Babiš emphasized that "Euro Patriot" should not pose direct competition to the United States.
At present, the initiative is a proposal by the Czech prime minister. There have been no reports of the creation of such a European complex as an approved joint project of EU member states.
