The purchase of a battalion of Abrams tanks will be subject to the approval of the Legislature, said Lieutenant General Teodor Incicas, head of the General Directorate for Armaments, on the podcast of the Defense Ministry (MApN) publication, 'Military Observer'.
In this context, he also mentioned acquisitions in the naval field.
"We are in the process of moving towards the prior approval of the Parliament, our requests regarding the approval of the purchase of a battalion of Abrams tanks, and we are also talking about a new package for the achievement of sea combat capabilities. Namely, we are referring to the purchase of submarines, the purchase of ships mine hunters and the modernization of missile-carrying ships," said Teodor Incicas.
He spoke about the arguments in favor of purchasing American tanks.
"Everyone imagines: 'OK, it's an old tank', without knowing the specific American tank modernization system. We're talking about its complete "undressing", its treatment, because its protection system is one that satisfies and its equipment with new equipment, in accordance with the version requested by us", he said.
Moreover, he added that the General Staff of the Land Forces "considered that for the mission of the brigade that it wants to reinforce with this type of tank, this is the best means and has its uniqueness in carrying out the missions".
According to Incicas, the purchase in this case will be of the G2G type.
"Being a battalion, the product will be purchased through a government-government purchase, not being sold in a commercial system of direct relationship with the company," he pointed out.
The lieutenant general also mentioned the Air Force acquisitions, estimating that all F-16 aircraft will be delivered in 2024.
"Last year we signed the contract for the purchase of 32 F-16 aircraft from the Norwegian state army. We believe that this year, followed by 2024, we will have the deliveries for these aircraft," he said.
At the same time, he spoke about the prospects in the field. "The acquisition of the F-16 aircraft is an interim stage until the acquisition of the 5th generation aircraft, i.e. the F-35 aircraft. The Romanian Army aims to have the first squadron of F-35 aircraft after 2030".
According to Incicas, this next stage will involve infrastructure analyses, infrastructure investments and then acquisition.
"I expect that this year or next year we will take the step to sign the contract for the F-35", he said, adding that "this cannot be done without the approval of the CSAT and without the prior approval of the Parliament".
Teodor Incicas also talked about the perspective of a "pocket drone", made in Romania.
"Last year, through our own research, we created the so-called 'pocket drone', which we are now going to approve and then purchase based on our projects and introduce it into the equipment of the military. A drone that is necessary for the serviceman, as an individual, in terms of immediate knowledge in the tactical field and reconnaissance, especially in urban combat," he said. AGERPRES
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