The Minister of Defense of Portugal Nuno Melo confirmed Monday to his French counterpart, Sébastien Lecornu the acquisition of 36 Caesar cannons (Truck equipped with an artillery system), manufactured by KNDS France. Lisbon thus joins the existing framework agreement with Croatia and Estonia. « To renew its artillery capacity, Portugal chose to acquire 36 cannons Caesar »confirmed the French minister on Other countries such as Estonia (12 pieces) and Croatia (12) have already placed orders to acquire this self-propelled cannon.
This acquisition will be carried out by the Directorate General of Armaments (DGA) from the industrial company KNDS France. Portugal aims to equip all Portuguese artillery with this equipment. This agreement is part of a strategy to renew the army. France and Portugal signed a protocol on September 26 for the acquisition of the Caesars. This 155mm cannon is capable of firing six shells 40 kilometers in less than a minute. It has equipped the French army since 2008.
Edirpa financing
On the occasion of the Eurosatory land arms exhibition last June, Croatia, Estonia and France signed a framework cooperation for the joint acquisition of Caesar with a view to strengthening their capabilities in artillery. This signature was also part of the joint acquisition of defense capabilities, eligible for funding from Edirpa (European defense Industry Reinforcement through common Procurement Act) from the European Union. Other countries had expressed interest in joining this cooperation. This is the case of Portugal.
In June, the Minister of the Armed Forces announced the signing of a contract for the acquisition of 36 Caesar cannons by Armenia following a meeting with his counterpart Suren Papikyan.
