WARSAW, Poland — The Croatian Ministry of Defense has placed an order for 44 Leopard 2A8 tanks, a deal valued at almost €1.5 billion ($1.8 billion).

The contract was signed by Ivan Anušić, Croatian deputy prime minister and defense minister, in the presence of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Croatia’s Prime Minister Andrej Plenković on Dec. 10 during an official visit of Croatian leaders to Berlin.

In his remarks at the official signing event, Plenković said the purchase is facilitated by the European Union’s low-cost loans for defense acquisitions under the bloc’s Security Action For Europe (SAFE) scheme. Brussels has made available a debt fund of some €150 billion to enable urgent purchases of new weapons and military gear by its member states, focusing on closing critical capabil

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