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A new chapter in Belgian ground-based air defence

Belgium is making a major investment in its ground-based air defence capabilities, working closely with its Dutch neighbour. On Monday 9 November, the two countries marked their air defence cooperation at the Royal Military Academy in Brussels, with KONGSBERG's NASAMS playing an important role.

  • Text:Amanda Chapman-Stavn / KONGSBERG

    Photo:Amanda Chapman-Stavn / KONGSBERG

The event brought together representatives from Belgium, the Netherlands and the defence industry to mark the next step in Belgium's air defence plans. KONGSBERG attended alongside Rheinmetall Air Defence and Thales Netherlands. The programme also included a symbolic signing ceremony marking the defence cooperation between Belgium and the Netherlands.

Image of Kjetil Myhra

We are proud to welcome Belgium to the NASAMS family. With its open architecture and proven flexibility, NASAMS can be tailored to meet evolving operational requirements, and continuously develop and expand its capabilities.

Kjetil Reiten Myhra, EVP KONGSBERG and President Defence Systems.

The ceremony followed the signing of a NOK 10 billion contract in September for the delivery of NASAMS to Belgium, making it the 18th nation to select the system. The Netherlands, already a NASAMS user, is procuring the systems on Belgium's behalf, with the Belgian Air Force as the end user.

With NASAMS on both sides of the border, Belgium and the Netherlands can work more closely on training, share operational experience and coordinate their air defence – strengthening their ability to respond to threats together.

Belgium and the Netherlands already work closely to protect Benelux airspace, including through shared fighter aircraft responsibilities. With NASAMS, they now have the opportunity to extend that cooperation to ground-based air defence.

Building on an established partnership

The Netherlands is already an experienced NASAMS operator and is continuing to expand its own air defence capabilities.

On the same day the Belgian contract was announced, KONGSBERG signed a further NOK 1.5 billion agreement with the Netherlands to expand its CITADEL programme. The contract includes additional NASAMS capabilities and several NOMADS systems, KONGSBERG's highly mobile short-range air defence solution.

The new orders build on KONGSBERG's longstanding relationship with the Netherlands, including the original CITADEL contract signed in 2024.

With both countries investing in NASAMS, the cooperation marked in Brussels supports closer coordination of ground-based air defence in the region, as European allies increasingly look to common capabilities to strengthen their defence capabilities.

See images from the event:

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