The Defense Committee of the Italian House of Representatives on February 25 approved the purchase of more than 130 of Germany's newest tanks, the Leopard 2A8.
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| The Italian Ministry of Defense wants to buy more than 130 Leopard 2A8 tanks from Germany to strengthen the country's defense capabilities. (Source: Top War) |
According to the Italian House of Representatives, this decision will begin a comprehensive, multi-year program to upgrade the army's armored component.
The Leopard 2A8 program is expected to last a total of 14 years (until 2037) and is divided into two phases: the first phase (2024-2026) includes preparatory work (to ensure that this main battle tank is adapted to the requirements of the Italian Ministry of Defense), while in the second phase (2027-2037), Germany will deliver 132 Leopard 2A8s.
Italy will establish two tank regiments with a total of 132 main battle tanks.
Italy also plans to equip units of heavy, medium and light brigades, all engineering and logistics regiments, as well as training facilities with 140 new armored vehicles based on the Leopard 2 chassis.
The total value of the tank and armored vehicle purchase deal is estimated at 8.246 billion Euros.
All 272 armored vehicles will be produced at the Leonardo plant in La Spezia, Italy. In the Italian army, the Leopard 2A8 will complement 90/125 Ariete C2 tanks.
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