On June 15 Minister of National Defence Arvydas Anušauskas met with Minister of the Armed Forces of France Sebastien Lecornu, the officials expressed delight about a fluent development of the Caesar Mark II new generation 155 mm self-propelled wheeled howitzer development.
“I welcome the successful practical cooperation between our artillery experts. Our acquisition of the French Caesar howitzers significantly strengthens our Armed Forces’ capabilities. It is particularly vital now that we have decided to develop a national division,” said A. Anušauskas.
Lithuania joined the Caesar Mark II development programme by a bilateral agreement late last year. The system will be an upgraded version of the Caesar wheeled artillery system currently in service with the Armed Forces of France. Caesar is valued for its mobility, quick and simple operator training and reliability.
The Ministry of National Defence will allocate approx. EUR 110-150 million for the entire Caesar Mark II artillery system development and acquisition project. The budget will be used for the development, acquisition and integration of the system in the Lithuanian Armed Forces. The deadline delivery is set to 2027, however, France agreed to accelerate the procedures.
Meeting with S. Lecornu, A. Anušauskas also discussed preparation for the NATO Summit in Vilnius, assistance to Ukraine and joint deployments to international operations.
