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The Czech Army will receive 14 additional Leopard 2A4 armored personnel carriers and a Büffel 3 technical rescue vehicle from Germany in return for military assistance to Ukraine, the Czech Defense Ministry announced.
The United States will also sell 12 Viper attack helicopters at a significant discount to Slovakia, which had previously donated MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine.
The modernization of the Czech Army’s tank fleet continues. Structurally obsolete Soviet equipment is being replaced by new, modern machines capable of fighting on the current battlefield. The Czech Ministry of Defense considers the arrival of the new tanks to be an important step forward.
“I would like to thank the German side for appreciating in this way our assistance to Ukraine in the face of brutal Russian aggression,” said Czech Defense Minister Jana Černochová. According to the ministry, the Germans should deliver the first tanks to the Czech Republic by the end of the year, with the rest arriving in early 2026.
The Czech army has already received 14 of the same tanks from the Germans in 2022 and 2023, bringing its total number of Leopard 2A4 tanks to 28, with plans to buy even more. For the Leopards, the Ministry of Defense has already started preliminary market negotiations. Negotiations are also underway to purchase the latest version of the Leopard 2A8 tank. If this is successful, the Czech Republic would be able to buy 61 from Germany under the framework agreement, and a further 16 in the future.
Robert Bielený, major general of the Czech Armed Forces, said that this is a step forward not only for the armored troops but also for the entire heavy brigade, whose build-up also represents a commitment by the Czechs to the collective defense of NATO.
“It is a significant development as we are moving away from Soviet technology, where we had problems both with the production of spare parts and with modifications or maintenance,” the major general noted.
The Slovak army is also in the process of development. Last week, the first two US F-16 fighter jets arrived at Kuchyňa Air Base; Slovakia has ordered 14 in total.
The United States is also offering to sell 12 Viper attack helicopters with Hellfire missiles at a significant discount, for a total of $600 million. The offer is so advantageous because Slovakia previously donated its MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine.
По материалам: http://www.planet-today.com/2024/08/czechia-and-slovakia-reap-rewards-of.html