Romania intensifies search for more tanks and could look beyond Abrams
An Australian M1A2 SEPv3 Abrams taking part in a live fire trial; Romania has ordered the same vehicles. (Photo: Australian DoD)
Since signing a contract to purchase 54 M1A2 Abrams tanks last year, Romania has been looking into options to buy more tanks, but it could cast the net wider than Abrams with funding considerations potentially set to shape the outcome.
Romania has a programme of record for more main battle tanks, an issue reinforced by Lt Gen Dragoş-Dumitru Iacob, deputy chief of defence for the Romanian Armed Forces, at Defence IQ’s International Armoured Vehicles conference in Farnborough, UK on 22 January.
While Iacob said the effort had progressed to “investigating options”, some sources at the conference said movement on the effort may prove faster than implied, with a milestone in the process potentially being reached within “months”.
The country ordered 54 M1A2 System Enhancement Package version 3 standard (SEPv3) Abrams tanks in 2025 under Phase I, alongside 12 support vehicles, in
Already have an account? Log in
Want to keep reading this article?
More from Land Warfare
-
![Oshkosh reboots British Army vehicle bid and displays JLTV with new weapons]()
Oshkosh reboots British Army vehicle bid and displays JLTV with new weapons
The British Army’s light protected mobility (LPM) requirement, part of the Land Mobility Programme, has taken on a new focus with the medium requirement bumped off to be replaced by heavy. The LPM may now need to fill some of the gap between light and heavy.
-
![Netherlands to get step change in air defence capability with FFG ACSV selection]()
Netherlands to get step change in air defence capability with FFG ACSV selection
FFG’s tracked Armoured Combat Support Vehicle will form the backbone of the Netherlands’ new low-level air defences, Shephard has learned, with scope for further fleet expansion beyond the initial order.
-
![EuroTrophy systems contracted for Leopard 2A8 tank buyers as demand rises]()
EuroTrophy systems contracted for Leopard 2A8 tank buyers as demand rises
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, the original designer and manufacturer of the system, states that more than 1,800 have been sold and, while not all customers are known, more than 1,000 of these have been bought by the US and Israel.
