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 The multi-billion dollar
Tank-2000 main battle tank co-production project has again become an issue of discontent between
Turkey and Germany, whose companies are competing as potential manufacturers in both schemes.
German Prime Minister Gerhard Schroeder has apparently postponed his March 6 visit to Turkey in order to avoid upsetting his coalition partner, the Green Party, which is against transferring arms to Turkey due to its poor human rights record. Germany has already rejected issuing an export license guarantee on the German
Krauss-Maffei Wegmann company's Leopard 2 tanks for Turkey's $7 billion main battle tank project.
There was a fierce debate within Germany's coalition government late last year before approval was granted for
Krauss-Maffei Wegmann to ship a tank to Turkey for trials that are now under way.
Krauss-Maffei Wegmann has written to the German government urging it to grant an export license for the Leopard 2A6 main battle tank. The final selection on tanks is expected to be made by the end of July.
The SSM has announced that the completion of the tank trials has been delayed from the end of June to the end of July. Turkish contractors have joined forces with one of the foreign companies offering main battle tank designs. The U.S. General Dynamics Land Systems, offering the diesel-powered M1A2, is cooperating with BMC and Nurol
Makina. Germany's Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, bidding on the Leopard 2A6, has established a consortium with
Otokar. Offering the Leclerc, France's Giat Industries has teamed with
Roketsan. Ukraine's Ukrspetsexport has teamed with Asmas to offer the T-84.
The Leopard 2A6 is competing against General Dynamics Land Systems M1A2 System Enhancement Program (United States), Giat Industries Leclerc (France) and the
Ukrspetsexport/Malyshev T-84 (Ukraine). In total 1,000 tanks worth $7 billion are due to be produced in batches. Under the request for proposals four prototype tanks and an initial production batch of 250 vehicles will be co-manufactured.
(Turkish Daily News, Lale Sariibrahimoglu).
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