WASHINGTON, Sept 11, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - The United States on Wednesday announced the approval of a $1.07 billion sale of advanced air-to-air missiles and related equipment to NATO ally Finland, which shares a long border with Russia.

"The proposed sale will improve Finland's capability to meet current and future threats and enhance its interoperability with US and other allied forces," the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) said in a statement.

It will also "support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by improving the security of a NATO ally that is a force for political stability and economic progress in Europe," DSCA said.

The State Department approved the possible sale of the missiles to Finland and the DSCA provided the required notification to the US Congress, which still needs to sign off on the transaction.

Finland along with Sweden abandoned decades of military non-alignment and joined NATO in the wake of Russia's all-out invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.