Shooting down Moscow’s missiles keeps costing US and its allies

(Originally published Sept. 6 in “What in the World“) Russia’s mounting bombardment of Ukraine on Wednesday killed seven people in the city of Lviv near the Polish border.

The attacks just across its border have prompted Poland to scramble its air force three times in the past eight days to ward off any chance that the missiles were aimed across the border. The war in Ukraine has pushed Warsaw into one of the most aggressive postures in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. After sealing $520 million in arms purchases this week, Poland aims to boost defense spending to 4.7% of its GDP this year, up from 4%—already one of NATO’s highest.

Fresh from its $1.3 billion purchase of more Javelin anti-tank missiles, the U.S. Army has ordered up $3.4 billion worth of the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket Systems, or Gmlrs, used in the popular Himars mobile launcher. Like its Javelin order, this one is aimed at replacing Gmlrs the Pentagon has given to Ukraine.