Industry
Artillery, Missiles, IFVs... Romania Shopping Spree for Weapons
The Romanian authorities have just announced a major modernization programme for the Armed Forces. That programme includes several capabilities that remain key in the event of a conventional conflict.
Back in March, the Romanian Ministry of Defence asked the parliament for approval of EUR 10 bn. worth procurement. The monitorulapararii.ro outlet has presented the details on that matter.
First and foremost, Romania is planning to procure 41 SHORAD/VSHORAD assets, with a sum of EUR 4.2 bn. allocated to that purpose.
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Another item on the shopping list comes in a form of 298 IFVs, for EUR 3 bn. First, 246 vehicles would be acquired, at EUR 2.5 bn., while the procurement per se is to begin in 2023.
2 bn. euros would be allocated to the acquisition of five 155 mm self-propelled artillery squadrons (90-100 howitzers, or more, depending on the structure). At the first stage, 3 squadrons are to be acquired, for EUR 1.15 bn., along with munitions, and a logistics support package.
The Air Force, meanwhile, hopes to acquire 500 air-to-air missiles. 372 million dollars would be used to acquire 186 AIM-120 AMRAAM missiles, and 239 million dollars would be allocated to the acquisition of 299 AIM-9Xs.
Furthermore, Romania is also planning to procure ca. 50 M1 Abrams MBTs, 150 Piranha V APCs, and 32 Norwegian F-16s that would complement several other Vipers, already operated by the Romanian Air Force. Earlier on, deliveries of the Patriot GBAD systems and HIMARS systems had begun.