Croatia signed an agreement with Germany on Wednesday to purchase 44 Leopard 2A8 tanks during Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic’s visit to Berlin.
According to foreign media, Telegrafi reports, speaking after the signing ceremony, Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed gratitude for Croatia’s decision.
“I sincerely thank you for this trust,” Merz said. “This strengthens our armed forces as NATO allies and integrates them seamlessly and efficiently through our systems. This has never been more important than today.”
“This shows that we stand together in the EU and in NATO. But it also shows that we have the means to respond to current threats from Russia and others to our security and integrity,” Merz added.
On the other hand, Plenkovic has emphasized the importance of the purchase of advanced Leopard tanks for his country, noting that Croatia will continue to modernize its armed forces, taking advantage of newly established EU defense programs and contributing to joint defense efforts.
“This is an important step when it comes to technology transfer to Croatia, to the transition to Western technology, where we can continue to strengthen cooperation in the field of defense and security – for example with the company DOK-ING and others,” he said, among other things. /Telegraph/