Stockholm has requested to enter, for the moment as an observer, the Franco[1]German project for the development of a new MGCS (Main Ground Combat System) tank. The country currently has a fleet of 120 Stridsvagn 122tanks, derived from the German Leopard 2A5, which it has kept in service since the late 1990s.
The Swedish forces will soon have to consider the replacement of this arsenal, in a context in which the country also seeks to enhance its defense capabilities against the Russian danger (increased since in 2014 Moscow took over the Crimean peninsula), explains the French media Opex 360. The source cites as the origin of the information an article published on Friday by the Swedish association for the promotion of debate on defense issues in the country Folk och Fösvar,which can be translated as People and Defense.
Last May, a German government document prepared for the country’s parliament was released in which the entry of new partners to the MGCSproject is foreseen, led by the German companies Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW),together with the French Nexter.
However, the MGCS project is now paralyzed, says the French media, which blames it on disagreements between the manufacturers involved. At the moment only Rheinmetall has been invited to the project, while KNDS remains in the background, which implies an inequitable distribution of work between the two countries involved. If the industrial plan does not change, the German manufacturer could impose its 130 mm L51 gun, instead of Nexter’s new Ascalon gun, and based on previous experiences such as the 140 mm FTMA gun program.