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Romania's Defence Ministry (MApN) welcomes the notification to the US Congress on Thursday of the sale to Romania of 54 Abrams M1A2 SEPv3 combat tanks, ammunition and training simulators.
"The combat vehicles that will become part of the Romanian Land Forces will be delivered in their most up-to-date version, which is also owned by the US Army. The estimated value of the contract is around USD 1.07 billion, in agreement with the prior approval of the Romanian Parliament. According to the American legislation, the US Congress was notified a higher initial value of approximately USD 2.5 billion. After the approval by the US Congress, the governments of Romania and the United States will sign a Letter of Acceptance, and Romania will then make the purchase at the value estimated and approved by the Romanian Parliament. For the security of supply, MApN will use the national industry to get integrated logistics support," MApN reported on Friday.
Defence Minister Angel Tilvar is quoted as saying in the press statement that the Abrams programme entering the finishing line is not only a major opportunity for the Romanian Land Forces, which will have state-of-the-art means of combat adapted to the challenges of the regional security environment, but it also demonstrates as concretely as possible "the solidity and excellent level of co-operation between Romania and the United States," especially in the defence area.
"The Strategic Partnership between Romania and the United States is one of the pillars on which Romania's national security rests and essentially contributes to strengthening the defence of the NATO eastern flank in the Black Sea region. The Patriot surface-to-air and HIMARS surface-to-surface missile systems, the armoured personnel carriers Piranha V, the F-16 multirole aircraft - programmes already underway - the Naval Strike Missile (NSM) coastal batteries that will be delivered in the near future, as well as the prospect of being equipped with the 5th generation aircraft, the F-35 - for which Romania has already opted officially - are the most important of the concrete dimensions of bilateral defence co-operation that ensures Romania's strengthened position from a strategic point of view in the region, where it acts as a pillar of NATO stability and provides it with strong anchors of interoperability with its allies," said Tilvar.
Tilvar also welcomed the latest deliveries of American combat equipment - on Thursday the first 33 JLTV (Joint Light Tactical Vehicles) armoured vehicles for the Special Operations Forces arrived in the country, and on Friday at Base 90 Otopeni Airport the second Hercules C-130H aircraft is received after the first aircraft of this type delivered in September.
