Belgium will purchase 15 self-propelled Gepard anti-aircraft systems for later transfer to Ukraine as part of a €1 billion military aid package.
According to the Ukrainian outlet Militarnyi, the information comes from the Belgian newspaper La Libre, citing L’Echo, which submitted a request to the office of Defense Minister Theo Francken.
The equipment will be purchased from OIP, a subsidiary of the Israeli defense company Elbit Systems. Before being delivered to Ukraine, the systems will be fully refurbished by the Belgian company.
They were previously in service with the Belgian Army but were decommissioned in the 2000s. The armored vehicles were later acquired by Sabiex, which was subsequently acquired by OIP.
Officials have not disclosed the exact cost of the purchase and refurbishment, but it is known that the Belgian Armed Forces previously operated a total of 54 of these anti-aircraft systems.
Photo: Joint Forces Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
