Chile quashes plan to buy 30 Marder armored vehicles for Ukraine

Chile's Foreign Ministry has officially shut down Germany's attempt to purchase Marder 1A3 armored vehicles to upgrade and ship to Ukraine.

Earlier, an investigative article by El Mostrador revealed that the Chilean Army may be preparing to transfer 30 Marder 1A3 vehicles to Germany, which will then upgrade them and transfer them to Ukraine.

Chile's Marder 1A3 tracked combat vehicle purchased from Germany in 2008.

The article asserts that the transaction was carried out in strict secrecy and could represent a change in Chile's long-standing neutral stance.

Chile's Defense Ministry declined to comment, but notably did not deny that the operation was underway.

However, Chile's foreign minister has just announced that national law prohibits sending weapons to countries in conflict.

Asked directly whether Chile could allow an indirect transfer by first handing over the vehicles to Germany, Van Klaveren said, "It is clear that there cannot be Chilean weapons on the battlefield in Ukraine, or anywhere else."

He added that "it is unthinkable to sell weapons to Ukraine, although politically we absolutely condemn the aggression against Ukraine".

The issue has raised concerns within Chile's defense establishment, especially since the vehicles are part of an aggressive modernization program aimed at keeping them on the front lines.

In 2023, Germany delivered 40 upgraded Marder 1A3s to Ukraine and promised to continue delivering 25 more. It is not clear whether those 25 have been delivered or not. The package of 30 Marder 1A3s for Chile is not included in that number.

Germany promised to provide Ukraine with about 65 Marder 1A3 vehicles equipped with 20mm automatic cannons.

Chile first purchased Marder 1A3 infantry fighting vehicles from Germany in 2008. The initial delivery included around 270 vehicles. Under the Centurión project, 180 of these vehicles were refurbished and deployed to Chilean armored infantry battalions, while the others were retained for spare parts and reserves.

The Marder 1A3 remains the main infantry fighting vehicle of the 1st Armored Brigade “Coraceros”, 2nd Armored Brigade “Cazadores” and 3rd Armored Brigade “La Concepción”.

According to Infodefensa.com, these vehicles are currently being upgraded under the Proaco program by Fábricas y Maestranzas del Ejército (FAMAE), a Chilean state-run military production unit.

It is not clear whether Germany will continue to make efforts to buy these weapons after Chile's announcement.