'Vorsprung durch technik' - Germany transfers four Patriot missile batteries to Israel.

'Vorsprung durch technik' - Germany transfers four Patriot missile batteries to Israel. (I24).

Announcement comes after Jerusalem bought four German-made warships to help secure gas rigs

Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon said Monday that Germany had transferred four Patriot missile batteries to Israel, the Israeli news site Haaretz reported.

Speaking at a press conference with German Defense Minister Ursula Von Der Leyen in Tel Aviv, Ya'alon said that Israel received the batteries in recent years as part of a military aid program.

Earlier in the day, Israel bought four German-made corvette warships on Monday to help secure its Mediterranean gas rigs, with Berlin heavily subsidizing the deal, Israel's Defense Ministry said.

The ships, worth 430 million euros ($480 million), will be built by Thyssen Krupp and delivered within five years, providing significantly more fire power to Israel's navy.

"The deal signed today is an event of the utmost significance that dramatically upgrades the navy's capabilities of defending the State of Israel's strategic sites in the gas realm," Defense Ministry director-general Dan Harel said.

Israel has huge and mostly untapped gas fields that cover some 23,000 square km (9,000 square miles) of sea -- more than Israel's territory on land.

Israeli planners see possible sea-borne or rocket threats to gas facilities from Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip, making expanding the naval presence a priority for them.

Israel's navy chief, Admiral Ram Rotberg, said in a separate statement that the corvettes would be classed as "Saar 6" missile boats -- suggesting a major improvement in capabilities. According to the navy website, its biggest warships are currently "Saar 5" missile boats. Israel's Channel 2 TV news said the Saar 6 vessels would be significantly larger, with twice the operational range of the Saar 5 class.