The review of the purchase of the Patria armed modular vehicles, which started with the withdrawal from the contract for the purchase of the Boxer vehicles almost two years ago, is close to completion, according to Prime Minister Robert Golob. Golob said on the sidelines of the NATO summit in the USA yesterday that a contract for the purchase of such military vehicles from Finland’s Patria is expected to be concluded by the end of the year.
The contract, he said, will provide for payment to be made directly between the two ministries, which will also ensure the highest possible level of transparency in the deal.
Asked how many eight-wheelers would be part of the deal and what the price would be, he replied that the procedures were still ongoing and that it was too early to talk about it.
The Boxer disgrace
Slovenia is finally buying the armed modular vehicles after the Golob government decided in September 2022 to withdraw from an agreement to buy Boxer vehicles under the Organisation for Joint Armaments Cooperation (OCCAR). The decision taken by the Golob government and the Ministry of Defence was unprofessional – and, above all, expensive. Thus, on coming to power, a frantic search began for a ‘flaw in the purchase’ or an excuse to justify the abandonment of the purchase under the previous government. This damaging move cost the State budget as much as 70 million euros.
Former Prime Minister Janez Janša also commented on the government’s intention to buy the Boxer vehicles after all, writing: “A historic irony. After 15 years, we are going back to Patria. And In the meantime, we saw the sabotage of development, democracy and the Slovenian Armed Forces.”
C. Š.
