Croatia Secures €235.7 Million for CAESAR Mk2 Howitzers and Leopard 2A8 Main Battle Tanks
Croatia has secured €235.7 million in its 2025 budget to fund advance payments for CAESAR Mk2 self-propelled howitzers and Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks, pushing national defense spending above the NATO benchmark and reinforcing ongoing force modernization efforts.
The Government of Croatia has adopted a decision to reallocate funds within the 2025 state budget, securing €235.7 million for major defence procurement programmes. The funding will be used to pay advance instalments for the acquisition of CAESAR Mk2 wheeled self-propelled howitzers, including associated systems and equipment, as well as for the procurement of Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks, simulators, and long-term logistical support with extended warranty coverage.
Finance Minister Marko Primorac explained that the decision involves a reallocation of budgetary resources amounting to just under €250 million, with the largest share earmarked for the Ministry of Defence to meet contractual obligations related to these modernisation projects.
In addition to heavy land systems procurement, the Government also approved a separate reallocation of just under €14 million to the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs. These funds will be used for Croatia’s contribution to NATO’s Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL), a mechanism designed to coordinate the acquisition and delivery of military equipment to Ukraine based on operational needs.
Taken together, the two decisions raise Croatia’s total defence spending to 2.08% of GDP, continuing the country’s recent trend of accelerated rearmament and force modernisation in line with NATO targets and the deteriorating security environment in Europe.
Minister Primorac also confirmed that just under €1.07 billion was paid into the state treasury on the same day, following the fulfilment of all indicators related to the seventh tranche of Croatia’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP). Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic подчеркнул that this represents the largest single payment from the European budget to Croatia since its accession to the European Union, bringing total NRRP disbursements to €6.4 billion.
