Nigeria takes delivery of first batch of Chinese VT4s
The Nigerian Army on 8 April received the first batch of 17 armoured vehicles from china. These included examples of the VT4 (MBT-3000) main battle tank, ST1 8x8 wheeled tank destroyer and SH5 105mm wheeled self-propelled howitzers from the China North Industries Corporation (NORINCO).
Nigeria’s Army Chief of Policy and Plans, Lt Gen Lamidi Adeosun, said the process of acquiring the new vehicles ‘has been on for some time’.
He added: ‘From this, you can see how serious the Federal Government of Nigeria is in making sure that the Nigerian Army is not only equipped but contains the problem of insecurity.’
The new equipment is to be used in the country’s far north where government forces continue to carry out counterinsurgency operations against Boko Haram.
Shephard Defence Insight reports that a VT4 has a unit cost of $5.25 million. Until now the only export customer outside China was Thailand, with 48 units from a total order of 52 having been delivered.
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