France and Germany agree to continue developing a new battle tank until 2040 despite disagreements on both sides, according to Reuters.
How it all started
Back in 2017, Berlin and Paris agreed to jointly develop a French-led fighter jet, estimated to cost about 100 billion euros, as well as a Franco-German tank to replace the German Leopard 2 and French Leclerc.
At the same time, the projects suffer from disagreements and delays that affect relations between the countries. In particular, there are questions about the extent to which Europe should become independent of the United States in its security policy.
“The political decision to move to the next phase is important because French and German companies have their interests, while Paris and Berlin do not see eye to eye on the concept,” Reuters adds.
In addition, the development of the next-generation tank is important to demonstrate that Europe can create its defense autonomy and compete with, for example, India and China, as well as stay ahead of Russia and the United States.
What was agreed upon
France and Germany have agreed on further division of work between manufacturers and plan to sign the first contracts by the end of this year.
“There has been very important work which ... enables us to say that in the 2040s, it will be time for two friendly neighbouring countries, members of the European Union and members of NATO, to have a completely functional and operational armoured cavalry,” French Defense Minister Sebastian Le Coronneu says.
As reported earlier, in mid-January, UK tested the DragonFire military laser, which is capable of hitting a target at the speed of light.
In particular, Israel tested the Spyder AiO air defense system during the same period.
