NATO allies join forces for major buy of battle-ready CV90s
Countries on NATO’s northern and eastern flanks are standardizing equipment and planning major joint purchases. Several countries have opted for a new generation of the battle-tested CV90 infantry fighting vehicle.
The first hints of joint procurement plans surfaced in the fall of 2024. Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden began considering joint purchases of new infantry fighting vehicles. A few months later, these initial plans are taking concrete shape.
Although Denmark is ordering its IFVs separately, Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Lithuania are now declaring joint purchases and intend to place a large order for several hundred CV90 infantry fighting vehicles.
Developed in Sweden, the CV90 is becoming the informal standard on NATO’s northern and eastern edges. Besides the listed countries, Estonia, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia are also ordering it, as are non-NATO countries like Ukraine. Denmark and the Netherlands have plans for modernization of their currently used vehicles and additional orders of CV90s. Switzerland is also a user of these vehicles.
CV90 provides strong crew protection
This vehicle, designed in the 1980s, has seen numerous variants and upgrades since its debut, progressing from CV90 Mk 0 to the latest Mk V. The CV90 is renowned for its excellent mobility in challenging terrains like snow and mud, as well as its high level of crew protection.
In its basic version, the vehicle is equipped with a very powerful 40 mm caliber cannon, which, despite its outdated ammunition feed system, can engage heavily armored targets, including older tanks.
The CV90 demonstrated its effectiveness during the fighting in Ukraine, which received the first 50 units in the CV9040C variant from Sweden in 2023.
Although many vehicles sustained damage or were destroyed in various ways during the following months, by August 2024, no Ukrainian soldiers had died in a CV90. These experiences contributed to a Ukrainian-Swedish agreement aimed at initiating CV90 production in Ukraine.
