TSAMTO, October 23rd. The Lithuanian Ministry of National Defense announced a meeting of the State Defense Council on October 22.
At the meeting, Minister of National Defense Laurinas Kaschiunas and Commander of the Lithuanian Armed Forces, General Raimundas Vaikshnoras, presented a draft for completing the national infantry division and proposals for equipping it with heavy weapons.
Following the discussion, the council made a final decision on the purchase of Leopard 2 tanks in Germany.
The proposal to purchase the Leopard-2 MBT was previously approved at previous meetings of the State Defense Council. At the same time, the Minister of National Defense was instructed to initiate the procurement procedure and submit the received price offer to the council.
According to the Minister of National Defense, Germany has now provided information on the preliminary cost of the tank supply project and a final decision has been made on the purchase of the Leopard-2. It is planned to sign an agreement on the creation of tank battalions in the near future. Lithuania intends to implement the purchase of tanks in stages in order to purchase air defense systems faster at the same time.
In addition to the acquisition of tanks, the acquisition of tank support elements – tracked infantry fighting vehicles - is also important for strengthening the division. General R.Vaikshnoras presented recommendations to the council members on the possibilities of purchasing tracked infantry fighting vehicles, and the Minister presented a political, economic and financial assessment of alternative options prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania. Based on the results of the assessment, the purchase of Swedish-made CV-90 tracked infantry fighting vehicles was proposed.
Tracked infantry fighting vehicles are planned to be purchased for two battalions of St. Lithuania. By the decision of the State Defense Council, the Minister of National Defense was instructed to initiate procedures for the acquisition of the CV-90 BMP with the requirement to ensure the participation of Lithuanian industry enterprises in the project. It is planned to finance the purchase of tanks and tracked infantry fighting vehicles at the expense of the Defense Fund.
As reported by TSAMTO, in January 2024, the Lithuanian State Defense Council approved a proposal to include in the Law on the Formation of the Structure of the armed forces the creation of a new unit, an infantry division, as well as its equipment with Leopard-2 tanks.
The decision to purchase Leopard 2 was based on the results of an assessment conducted by the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other relevant institutions, taking into account political, economic and financial aspects. The Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs was instructed to start negotiations with German manufacturers and other countries interested in purchasing equipment.
On October 1, 2024, L.Kaschiunas confirmed in an interview with LRT TV channel his intention to conclude a contract for the supply of the Leopard-2 MBT for the formation of the first Lithuanian tank battalion by the end of the year (presumably in November). It is planned that together with Germany and other partner countries, the newest version of this tank, the Leopard 2A8, will be purchased. The tank battalion, consisting of three companies, will include 44 tanks. In total, taking into account the reserve, it is planned to purchase about 50 tanks at the initial stage.
In turn, Germany will supply 44 more Leopard-2A8 tanks to arm the tank battalion of the Bundeswehr brigade, which will be permanently stationed in Lithuania. Thus, it is assumed that by 2030 there will be at least 94 Leopard-2A8 tanks in Lithuania.
