The National Defence Ministry proposes to sign in 2017 eight acquisitions programmes

The National Defence Ministry (MApN) aims to sign, this year, all eight endowment programmes of the Romanian Army, for which the approval of Parliament was requested, National Defence Minister Gabriel Les stated, quoted by Agerpress. 

"All the programmes that we have on endowment exceed a very large amount. We receive approval for all the eight letters that we sent, and we will start procedures for purchasing them, and during this year, we hope to sign as many as possible of the eight programmes," Minister Les told at the end of discussions which were carried out with members of the joined committees of the Senate and the Deputies' Chamber on matters related to the Army's endowment programmes. 

When asked which of the acquisition programmes were to be initialed this year, the Minister said: The air defence system, the missile launch system, the 8x8 and 4x4 transportor, the C4ISR capabilities, the modernization of the infantry's combat machine, the multinational corvettes." "There are the eight programmes, our wish is to sign them, certainly that the procedure is a pretty long one," Les explained. The Minister mentioned that the amount allotted in the following years for the endowment programmes is "a very high amount, because military technique costs." Les couldn't confirm the amount that circulated in this regards, namely nine million euros, but he mentioned that "it's about the 2 percent of the GDP [allocated to Defence budget in 2017 - e.n.]." The hearing of Gabriel Les in the joined specialized parliamentary committees occurs following a memorandum sent to Parliament through which it was requested a prior approval for initiating the purchase procedures of the afferent contracts to several Army's endowment programmes.

The Joined Standing Bureaus have sent the document on Tuesday to the defence, public order and national security committees.

According to the memorandum, "the increase of the MApN budget, starting 2017, to 2 percent of the GDP created the conditions for implementing some endowment programmes strictly necessary for boosting the modernization of Romania's Army.