Croatia and Germany have signed a letter of intent (LoI) under which Croatia will acquire new German Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks (MBTs) at a reduced price in return for transferring tanks and infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) from its current inventory to Ukraine.
The LoI was signed in Berlin on 28 October 2024 by Croatian Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Ivan Anušić and German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius.
The agreement expresses the readiness of the two countries to initially deliver 30 M-84 MBTs and 30 M-80 IFVs, including spare parts and ammunition, from Croatian stocks to Ukraine, with the Croatian Ministry of Defence (MoD) stating in a 28 October press release, “The financial resources that the Republic of Croatia will receive from Germany for these tanks and combat vehicles will be used for the purchase of new German Leopard 2A8s. Namely, the total price of the new Leopard 2A8s would be reduced by that amount.”
The M-84 is a Yugoslav-built variant of the Soviet-designed T-72 MBT armed with a 125 mm main gun, while the M-80 is an original Yugoslav-designed IFV armed with a 20 mm cannon and 9M14 Malyutka anti-tank missiles. Both vehicles are broadly similar to AFVs operated by the Ukrainian Army prior to the influx of Western types following the Russian invasion of February 2022.
The Croatian MoD added that, “Considering the needs of the Croatian Army, the Republic of Croatia intends to acquire up to 50 new Leopard 2A8s.”
“This is one of the largest and most significant modernisation projects of the Croatian Army. Along with all the modernisation projects of the Croatian Air Force and the Croatian Navy, we have reached the strengthening of our armoured forces, our tank battalions,” said Anušić.
Croatian acquisition of the latest Leopard 2A8 MBTs will follow the country’s purchase of eight M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), for which Zagreb received approval from the US State Department in September 2024. The Croatian armed forces are also acquiring unmanned aerial vehicles to enhance their capabilities.
With these procurements Croatia is significantly shortening its schedule for reaching the NATO goal of spending 2% of GDP on defence.
“Although we have already shortened the deadline from 2030 to 2027, after the procurement process of HIMARS, unmanned aerial vehicles and now Leopards, we will reach 2% of the GDP allocation for defence well before 2027,” said Anušić.
