The Ministry of Defense of the Slovak Republic is interested in purchasing Swedish CV90120-T light tanks as an alternative to the expensive Leopard 2A8.

This was announced by the Minister of Defense of Slovakia Robert Kalinak.

According to the Ministry of Defense, the purchase of Swedish light tanks is a much cheaper alternative that will allow the purchase of more units for a lower price.

The renewal of the tank fleet has become relevant for Slovakia recently, as the country still uses old Soviet T-72M1 tanks and Leopard 2A4s received from Germany as compensation for the transfer of 30 BMP-1s to Ukraine.

In May 2024, officials representing the Ministry of Defense of Slovakia at the Future Armored Vehicles Central & Eastern Europe conference announced their intention to purchase more than a hundred Leopard 2 tanks.

As part of this possible order, the Ministry of Defense plans to reorganize its units and, in addition to the 14th Tank Battalion, create two additional battalions with 52 new tanks each. Currently, Slovakia plans to spend about $2 billion to purchase more than 100 tanks, but there is a possibility that this decision may be revised.

Today, Slovakia is already participating in the CV90 infantry fighting vehicle production program. The Slovak company Koval Systems has opened a new workshop at its plant in the village of Belus to produce turrets for the CV90 MkIV infantry fighting vehicle.

The production was deployed as part of the procurement of 152 infantry fighting vehicles with localization of production – 40 percent of the contract value is to be made by local Slovak firms.

If Slovakia chooses the CV90120-T light tank, it can obtain more favorable procurement terms, increase its own contribution to the program and increase the percentage of components to be produced domestically, up to the full production of hulls.

CV90120-T

The CV90120 is a light tank developed by Hägglunds Vehicle (now BAE Systems Hägglunds) as a new anti-armor vehicle for the Swedish Army to replace the outdated Ikv.91 amphibious light tank, based on the CV9040 infantry fighting vehicle.

The layout of the armored vehicle remains the same as the CV9040, but the troop compartment has been converted into a 120 mm ammunition compartment.

The turret is equipped with a 120 mm CTG (Compact Tank Gun) developed by Swiss Ordnance Works (now RUAG Land Systems), which provides combat power similar to main battle tanks.

The total ammunition capacity is 40 rounds, of which 10 are located in the turret loading machine and 30 in the rear of the hull.

The commander is equipped with a panoramic sight with a thermal imaging channel from Celsius (now Saab), and the gunner uses the UTAAS (Universal Tank and Anti-Aircraft System) sighting system from the same company.