State Dept. approves $2.5B sale of Abrams tanks to Romania

WASHINGTON — The State Department cleared an estimated $2.53 billion foreign military sale of M1A2 Abrams Main Battle Tanks to Romania , the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said Nov. 9.

DSCA notified Congress, which must approve the sale, today.

Romania wants to buy 54 of the General Dynamics Land Systems-manufactured M1A2 SEPv3 Abrams tanks, 54 M1A1 structures, four M88A2 Hercules Combat Recovery Vehicles, four M1110 Joint Assault Bridges, four M1150 Assault Breacher Vehicles and four Heavy Assault Scissor Bridges.

The order would also include 54 M240C 7.62mm machine guns, 5,940 120mm M1147 High Explosive, Multipurpose, Tracer (HEMP-T) cartridges, 4,230 120mm M1002 Target Practice Multipurpose, Tracer (TPMP-T) cartridges and a variety of other support equipment.

Romanian lawmakers approved the National Defence Ministry’s request to buy 54 used M1A2 Abrams tanks from the United States in May 2023. At the time the cost was estimated to be worth 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion).

The Romanian government is accelerating work on a number of procurements, including plans to buy new armored vehicles, missiles systems, warships, 155mm howitzers and the F-35 Lightning II fighter jet in the aftermath of Russia’s attack against Ukraine.

Romania could become the second operator of the Abrams tank after the Polish government signed a deal worth nearly $5 billion to a cquire 250 of the tanks in 2022 and placed a second order in January 2023 for another 116 Abrams worth $1.4 billion.

Jen Judson is an award-winning journalist covering land warfare for Defense News. She has also worked for Politico and Inside Defense. She holds a Master of Science degree in journalism from Boston University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Kenyon College.

华盛顿——美国国防安全合作局于11月9日表示，国务院已批准向罗马尼亚出售价值约25.3亿美元的M1A2艾布拉姆斯主战坦克。

美国国防安全合作局（DSCA）今天已通知国会，该项出售必须获得国会批准。

罗马尼亚希望购买 54 辆通用动力陆地系统公司制造的 M1A2 SEPv3 艾布拉姆斯坦克、54 座 M1A1 结构、4 辆 M88A2 大力神战斗抢修车、4 座 M1110 联合突击桥、4 辆 M1150 突击破障车和 4 座重型突击剪式桥。

该订单还将包括 54 挺 M240C 7.62 毫米机枪、5,940 发 120 毫米 M1147 高爆多用途曳光弹 (HEMP-T)、4,230 发 120 毫米 M1002 靶场练习多用途曳光弹 (TPMP-T) 以及各种其他支援设备。

2023 年 5 月，罗马尼亚议员批准了国防部从美国购买 54 辆二手 M1A2 艾布拉姆斯坦克的请求。当时估计费用为 10 亿欧元（11 亿美元）。

在俄罗斯袭击乌克兰之后，罗马尼亚政府正在加快多项采购工作，包括计划购买新型装甲车、导弹系统、军舰、155毫米榴弹炮和F-35闪电II战斗机。

继波兰政府于 2022 年签署价值近 50 亿美元的协议，采购 250 辆艾布拉姆斯坦克，并在 2023 年 1 月再次订购价值 14 亿美元的 116 辆艾布拉姆斯坦克之后，罗马尼亚可能成为第二个使用艾布拉姆斯坦克的国家。

珍·贾德森是一位屡获殊荣的记者，为《防务新闻》报道陆地战争。她也曾为《政治报》和《内幕防务》工作。她拥有波士顿大学新闻学硕士学位和凯尼恩学院文学学士学位。