Netherlands to stand up first new armor unit in over a decade, agrees to buy at least 46 Leopard 2A8

PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo via Swedish Armed Forces Forces

AMSTERDAM  -  The Dutch government said on Wednesday it had signed an agreement to buy at least 46 Leopard 2A8 tanks from German-French arms maker KNDS as the Netherlands builds a tank unit for the first time in over a decade.

The tanks will be delivered between 2028 and 2031 and form part of a push by the Dutch to increase military spending in order to comply with the NATO target of spending at least 2% of GDP on defence. 

The new tank battalion, which could be expanded with another six tanks, will be stationed in Germany and include around 500 soldiers, the government said in a statement.

 (Reporting by Bart Meijer; Editing by Aidan Lewis)