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The U.S. State Department has approved a possible sale of AGM-184 Joint Strike Missiles and associated support to Belgium, a package valued at up to $236 million, the department said in a notice of a potential Foreign Military Sale.
Belgium’s request covers the missiles as well as spare parts, consumables and accessories; repair-and-return support; training aids and devices; testing and multi-purpose missile equipment; classified and unclassified software, publications and technical documentation; transportation; and U.S. government and contractor engineering, technical and logistics support. The principal contractors are Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace of Kongsberg, Norway, and RTX Corporation of Arlington, Va.
Washington framed the deal as advancing U.S. foreign policy and national security objectives by strengthening a NATO ally and supporting political stability and economic progress in Europe. The department said the sale would bolster Belgium’s ability to meet current and future threats by enhancing the lethality of its F-35 fleet and supporting Brussels’ contributions to NATO’s collective defense. It added that Belgium is expected to integrate the equipment without difficulty and that the transfer would not alter the basic military balance in the region.
The Joint Strike Missile, developed by Kongsberg with RTX as a key partner, is a long-range, precision, air-launched weapon designed for both anti-ship and land-attack missions. It is the air-launched counterpart to the Naval Strike Missile and is being integrated across several F-35 user nations.
As with all proposed Foreign Military Sales, the approval triggers a congressional review period before any contract is finalized. For NATO members, Congress typically has 15 days to raise objections or allow the sale to proceed. The notification did not specify the number of missiles covered by the package, only the not-to-exceed value.
Belgium is acquiring F-35A fighters to replace its F-16s, with 34 aircraft on order. Arming those jets with standoff, precision weapons such as the AGM-184 is seen as a core element of the country’s modernization plans and NATO burden-sharing commitments.
No delivery timeline was provided in the announcement.
