The Department of Defense cleared the Standard Missile-6 (SM-6) interceptor for international sale on January 10, 2017. The SM-6 is currently used by the U.S. Navy and has anti-ship, air defense, and terminal ballistic missile defense capabilities. The SM-6 is compatible with Aegis hardware and software, leveraging Aegis’ Baseline 9 system, which allows Aegis-equipped ships to perform both air and missile defense simultaneously. U.S. allies Australia, Japan, and South Korea are considered the most likely buyers for the missile, as their fleets contain Aegis-capable ships that are either equipped, or are currently being upgraded to Baseline 9.