WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — On October 20, for the first time, a SM-3 was test-fired to intercept and destroy a ballistic missile in a test in the European theater.
“Work will be performed in Tucson, Arizona, with an expected completion date of March 2020,” the announcement stated on Tuesday.
The Department of Defense has been deploying US Navy DDG51 Arleigh-Burke-class destroyers armed with SM-3 interceptors around Europe, which Russia has criticized as upsetting the strategic balance in the region.
