Slovakia considers CV90120-T as a cost-effective tank alternative
Slovakia has several tanks and is considering abandoning plans to purchase new Leopard 2A8s. Seeking cost savings, Slovakia may instead opt for CV90120-T fire support vehicles. This decision is particularly intriguing as no NATO country has used this equipment.
The concerns of the Slovak Ministry of Defence were highlighted by the portal Denník N. Robert Kaliňák, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of Slovakia, expressed that there are currently no funds in the country’s budget to purchase a more significant number of modern tanks. Despite this, the need to strengthen the Slovak army with heavy equipment remains evident. The compromise could be the CV90120-T.
Will Slovakia buy CV90120-T? It would be an exception in NATO
Currently, the Slovak army possesses 30 Soviet-era T-72M1 tanks and 15 Leopard 2A4 tanks, which Germany provided as compensation for Slovak equipment sent to Ukraine. It was initially planned that these would eventually be replaced by 104 modern Leopard 2A8 tanks with the EuroTrophy active protection system. However, such a purchase is not feasible due to the financial constraints of the Slovak Ministry of Defence.
In search of alternative solutions, Slovakia has chosen a very unusual direction. Presently, the frontrunner in the race to join the Slovak armoured forces is the CV90120-T, a fire support vehicle developed by BAE Systems. The costs would be approximately £9 million per unit. However, the CV90120-T is equipment not used by any NATO country, which might raise further questions about the interoperability of the Alliance's member states' armies.
CV90120-T on the chassis of a well-known infantry fighting vehicle
This fire support vehicle (light tank) has been in service since 1998, although the current order would result in the acquisition of modernised, newer variants, the CV90120-T.
The CV90120-T is based on the chassis of the well-known CV-90 infantry fighting vehicle. However, it is distinguished by its 120 mm smoothbore gun, with a barrel length of 50 calibres. Although its firepower is comparable to that of heavy tanks, the CV90120-T does not provide the same high level of protection—it is more lightly armoured.
From Slovakia's perspective, purchasing the CV90120-T may prove beneficial not only financially but also as an investment in equipment well-suited to the previously ordered infantry fighting vehicles, the CV-90 – 152 units of the CV-90 MkIV with a 35 mm cannon.
