Morocco is considering the acquisition of up to 400 South Korean K2 Black Panther tanks. This interest is driven, among other factors, by the challenges of maintaining a highly heterogeneous armored vehicle inventory, from which the country previously transferred several dozen T-72B tanks to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Information about the potential scale of the deal comes from South Korean defense industry sources, as reported by Barlamane. Morocco is also expected to procure KM-SAM air defense missile systems, also known as Cheongung.
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According to some sources, Moroccan officials explain their choice by arguing that reliance "exclusively on Abrams," even in their latest variants, no longer meets the full spectrum of operational requirements. Instead, they are seeking a "flexible and multi-layered" approach to strengthening the country's armed forces.
From a Defense Express perspective, this assessment appears reasonable, as neighboring countries have been actively rearming in recent years, making additional force modernization a rational step. Algeria is a particularly notable example, as it continues to procure russian weaponry, including Su-57 fighters and Su-34 bombers.
As for Morocco's tank fleet, it currently includes T-72B tanks being upgraded to the T-72EA standard, M60 tanks, Type-90-II tanks, and Abrams. The latter comprise 222 M1A1SA tanks already in service, as well as 162 M1A2 SEPv3 tanks on order, deliveries of which began in 2023.
The result is a veritable "zoo" of armored vehicles, with U.S.-made platforms forming the backbone. However, such diversity remains difficult and costly to sustain, making the search for replacements for aging systems unsurprising. In this context, the South Korean K2 stands out as one of the most attractive options, not least because of its high production rates.
In terms of air defense, the Cheongung system has also demonstrated solid export success, with contracts signed with Iraq, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia, and it continues to receive improved iterations. Morocco, for its part, had already expressed interest in acquiring both K2 tanks and South Korean air defense systems as early as the spring of 2025.
It should be recalled that in 2023 it became known that, at the request of the United States, Morocco transferred several dozen Soviet-made T-72B tanks to Ukraine. These vehicles were upgraded in the Czech Republic to the T-72EA standard, thereby enhancing Ukraine's battlefield capabilities.
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