The Chief of the General Staff of the Army, Lieutenant General, Vasko Gjurchinovski, the Minister of Defense, Slavjanka Petrovska and the U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of North Macedonia, Angela Aggeler, today, at barracks “Jane Sandanski” in Shtip, attended a presentation of the new light armored vehicles (LAV) JLTV, as the latest addition to the Army’s combat vehicles.
The 2nd Infantry Battalion presented the new vehicles, which arrived earlier this month, and they will support this leading unit of the Light Infantry Battalion Group.
The Chief of the General Staff, Minister Petrovska and Ambassador Aggeler addressed the guest and the members of the battalion.
General Gjurchinovski in his address said that with the operational readiness of the new light armored vehicles as well as the other modern equipment, which is to be delivered in the foreseeable future, the operational capabilities and the combat readiness of the Army will be increased.
The project for procurement of new light armored wheeled vehicles was launched in 2019, with the Agreements concluded between the Governments of the Republic of North Macedonia and the United States, reminded General Gjurchinovski, and expressed his gratitude for the cooperation and the support we receive from our strategic partner.
These modern combat vehicles will support the 2nd Infantry Battalion, whose members were commended for the results they have achieved so far, and at the same time they were encouraged to work towards reaching the required training standards and the standards for proper maintenance of the these vehicles.
Minister Petrovska, addressing the guests, said that respect and love for your own country is best demonstrated through investments in its defense, equipment, weapons and the human resources. “We are currently discussing and planning procurement of light infantry weapons, new armoured personnel carriers, new air defense systems and artillery systems, new helicopters and other modern armament”, said the Minister.
The Minister said that the process of investing in the equipment and the human resources is ongoing and after the consultations for changes in the Law on Service in the Army will begin, the standard of the army personnel will further improve
Ambassador Aggeler congratulated the Chief of the General Staff, the Minister of Defense and the citizens of our country for the procurement of these vehicles, as vital assets for the NATO interoperability and the modernization process.
After these addresses, the guests had an opportunity to see a short demonstration of the capabilities of these highly sophisticated armored vehicles of the Army. The vehicles are part of the process of equipping and modernization of the Army with different highly sophisticated vehicles and equipment. So far, total of 32 vehicles of this type have been delivered to the Army.
Today’s event was attended by members of the Assembly’s Committee on Defense and Security, representatives of the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia, the General Staff and the Ministry of Defense.
The JLTV light armored vehicles are part of the process of modernization and equipping of the Army in accordance with NATO standards.
