The Slovak Ground Forces currently possess 30 T-72M1 tanks inherited from the Soviet era and the 15 Leopard 2A4 tanks received from Germany as compensation for the Warsaw Pact weapons Bratislava had transferred to Ukraine.
The Slovak military wanted to replace the remaining T-72s with modern vehicles, one of the reasons being the NATO obligations. But suddenly, they decided to adjust the plans: although initially, the Ministry of Defense weighed buying 104 Leopard tanks at once of the latest 2A8 modification, now it looks toward less powerful yet more affordable CV90120-T vehicles from BAE Systems. These light tanks were created on the basis of the CV90 infantry fighting vehicle by adding 120-mm guns.
Read more: Slovakia Rejects AH-1Z Viper Helicopters; Ukraine Expressed Interest, but Their Cost Reaches $600 Million
The Slovak defense ministry explains the pivot with financial considerations. Buying 104 new Leopard 2A8s would cost the state treasury more than EUR 2 billion, or €25 million per vehicle which is extremely expensive.
At the same time, Slovakia cannot purchase any feer than exactly 104 tanks because it is obliged to NATO to establish two tank battalions in the Slovak army instead of the current one and expand their power to 52 tanks per battalion instead of 44.
The CV90120-T light tanks, on the other hand, offer a solution to the problem for €11 million per vehicle to both expand the numbers and replace the obsolete T-72s. This option is being discussed in the ministry cabinets now.
Based on the data from The Military Balance studies by IISS, in 2023, the entire defense budget of Slovakia amounted to 2.46 billion euros (no data for 2024). On that note, spending €2 billion for the purchase of new MBTs alone may indeed seem unaffordable, but on the flip side, Slovakia could well divide the acquisition into several payments over the next few years. That would be especially practical since Slovakia originally planned to buy Leopard 2A8s in cooperation with Germany that also wants to procure this MBT for the Bundeswehr.
Speaking of CV90120-T, the vehicle might be boasting attractive specifications, at first glance, in terms of price and the mobility/firepower ratio. However, it fundamentally cannot perform the same functions on the battlefield as a classic main battle tank.
Furthermore, no NATO country has purchased the CV90120-T light tanks at the moment, a factor that only exacerbates the existing problem with interoperability between the other Alliance members' armies on the battlefield. Therefore, a logical question: why really buy this kind of vehicle, especially when there is already a problem of a short defense budget?
Slovakia's acquisition preferences underline that things aren’t exactly going smoothly when it comes to real unification of military equipment across NATO members. It also shows that ramping up defense spending is not the only problem the Alliance is facing, another is translating the quantitative factors of defense capability into qualitative ones.
Read more: Poland Pledges New Military Aid to Ukraine But Only So Much It Can Give
