Agreement between Italy and Germany for the development of new generation military land vehicles. The industrial and technological synergy between two of the main European companies involves the creation of an equal joint-venture for the development of cutting-edge tanks and infantry units. In particular, 60% of the activities will be carried out in Italy, where the estimated volume of orders for the Italian Army could reach 23 billion euros in 14 years.

"We consider this agreement a fundamental contribution towards the creation of a European defense space", explained the CEO of the Italian group, Roberto Cingolani, yesterday. This was echoed by Armin Papperger, ceo of Rheinmetall: "We are joining forces to realize ambitious projects. We want to establish new standards together and open the doors to a generation of cutting-edge technologies in and for Europe".

The memorandum of understanding signed yesterday between the two companies provides for the construction of over 250 tanks and approximately 1000 tracked combat vehicles for the Italian Army. The strategic agreement also concerns major European defense programs: the roadmap for the future Main Ground Combat System (MGCS) heavy tank is outlined.