Morocco, Israel Conclude $500 Million Deal for Missile Defense System

Rabat – Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) will provide Morocco with the Barak MX air and missile defense system. The deal is worth over $500 million, Israeli daily Globes reported.

A source told Morocco World News that the Israeli aircraft manufacturing company IAI has reached an agreement with Morocco to supply it with the Barak MX missile defense system.

The Barak MX missile defense system is flexible and modular and can protect against a range of missile threats and unmanned drones, Globes’ report explained.

The negotiations reportedly began with the visit of Israel’s Defense Minister Benny Gantz to Morocco on November 23, 2021.

During Gantz’s visit, Morocco and Israel signed military agreements to strengthen security cooperation.

The purchased system enables the management of three types of IAI’s Barak interceptors: Barak-MRAD, a single-pulse rocket engine, which intercepts missiles up to a distance of 35 kilometers; Barak-LRAD, a dual-pulse rocket engine that intercepts missiles up to 70 kilometers; and the Barak-ER dual-pulse rocket engine as well as an additional booster for a range of 150 kilometers.

Barak-MX is additionally supported by radar and various launchers for the best coverage of combat aircraft, helicopters, drones, cruise missiles, surface-to-air missiles, and surface-to-surface missiles.

Morocco also purchased the Skylock Dome anti-drone system from Israel last year. The system detects, verifies, and neutralizes drones.

The North African country has been reinforcing its military equipment and boosting its defense system amid rising tensions in the region.

Most recently, the country bought from Spain MAD 321 million ($34 million) worth of ammunition, military devices, torpedo bombs, rockets, missiles, aircraft, lighter-than-air vehicles, and unmanned vehicles (UAV).

The United States remains the main arms supplier for Morocco, covering 90% of the country’s demand, ahead of France (9.2%), and the UK (0.3%), according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).