Breaking news
Latvia plans to purchase 120 armoured vehicles from United Kingdom 2802141.
| 2014
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Defence & Security News - Latvia |
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| Friday, February 28, 2014 08:13 AM | |||
Latvia
plans to purchase 120 armoured vehicles from United Kingdom. |
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Thursday,
27 February 2014, Latvian Defense Minister Raimonds Vejonis (Greens/Farmers)
met with British Defense Ministry State Secretary Philip Hammond, during
which the two sides signed a protocol for cooperation in a project aimed
at mechanizing Latvia's infantry brigade, LETA was informed by Defense
Ministry spokesman Kaspars Galkins. |
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 Latvian army soldier talks with U.S. Navy officer in charge of U.S. Navy Explosive Ordnance during a mission in Afghanistan. |
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The
protocol establishes the commitment from both sides to sign an intergovernmental
agreement between Latvia and Great Britain for the purchase of armored
vehicles which have been in limited use or have been rebuilt. At the moment, the Defense Ministry plans to purchase 120 such armored vehicles from Great Britain, which will be worth approximately EUR 70 million. During the signing, Vejonis emphasized that this is the first step in the National Armed Forces' long-term development plans and an important investment in strengthening Latvia's defense capabilities. He added that, unfortunately, due to the economic crisis, the mechanization project of Latvia's infantry brigade had been put on holds for several years. After joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Latvia has undertaken obligations to strengthen common defense within the scope of its capabilities. For this purpose, every NATO member state delegates its military formations — fast response, well-armed and well-equipped units capable to operate beyond the NATO’s borders. Currently, Latvian armed forces have only a few Soviet-made armoured vehicles and main battle tank T-55 and BRDM-2. |
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