Germany and France agree to manufacture a new combat tank

French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu said that the essence of the agreement is that Germany and France will have the same tank in 2040.

France and Germany signed a military agreement on Friday, in Paris, to manufacture a new battle tank.

The defense ministers of the two countries signed the previously planned agreement, as the project will be jointly financed.

The new tank will be an alternative to the French “Leclerc” and German “Leopard” tanks.

The advanced combat tank was called the “Main Ground Combat System (MGCS)” and will serve as a signal of European cooperation in defense policy, although there have been tensions between the two countries over the details in recent years.

French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu said that the essence of the agreement is that Germany and France will have the same tank in 2040.

“There is no scenario in which the two armies would not participate globally against the same opponent or in any case under the same conditions of joint training,” Lecornu added, noting that the agreement is of political and economic importance.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius expressed similar views to his counterpart, calling for the development of the arms industry in Europe.

“We must develop the best solutions in the armaments sector in Europe, certainly not in the short term – that won’t work – but in the medium and long term,” Pistorius said.

The planned system is a counterpart to the Future Combat Air System, or FCAS, project, which France, Germany and Spain have already agreed to develop.

Germany will take the lead role in the new MGCS tank project, and France in the FCAS air system project.