UK to buy mobile artillery systems from Germany New deal

Britain has announced that it has signed a 52-million-pound ($70 million) joint procurement contract with Germany to acquire advanced artillery mounted on armoured vehicles that can fire while moving and hit targets more than 70 km (44 miles) away.

A Ministry of Defence statement said the deal would provide the British Army with an early capability demonstrator of the RCH 155 system and two units for Germany to test, Caliber.Az reports via Western media.

The system is manufactured by Franco-German defence group KNDS and Germany's Rheinmetall.

The system can fire eight rounds per minute on the move, operate with two crew members and travel 700 km without refuelling, the statement said.

UK Minister for Defense Readiness and Industry Luke Pollard MP said the system reflected lessons learned from the war in Ukraine.

“The British Army will soon have new artillery that can fire on the move,” he said. “This builds on lessons from Ukraine, enabling our Army to hit targets 70km away and move fast away from returning fire so they can fire again.”

He added that the conflict has shown the importance of speed and mobility on the battlefield.

“The war in Ukraine has demonstrated the importance of being able to fire rapidly and move, and it is such lessons that are informing our procurement decisions and helping us deliver on the Strategic Defense Review,” he said.

As part of the contract, the UK and Germany will also share test data and facilities during development, allowing both nations to speed up procurement while reducing costs.

By Khagan Isayev