Germany and France to speed up development of a new generation tank

Germany and France have promised to accelerate the joint development of a next-generation battle tank by the end of the year as part of the MGCS (Main Ground Combat System) project.

This was announced during a meeting at the Evreux-Fauville air base by German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius and French Defense Minister Sébastien Le Coronneu, Politico reports.

According to the German minister, by the end of this year, Paris and Berlin will identify different areas of cooperation, as well as a leading country for each of them.

"The pace was slow, and now we are accelerating. Next year, I hope, we will reach the decisive stage of signing a contract that could allow other (countries) to join the project," Pistorius said.

After the ministerial meeting, the heads of the French and German armed forces signed the so-called High-Level Joint Operational Requirements Document (HLCORD), a key step towards the actual specifications of the main battle tank.

While the original project schedule agreed in 2017 was for 2035-2040, Lecornu said it is now shifting to 2040-2045.

Author - Olena Madiak, 22/09/2023