On Thursday, February 13, 2025, during the North Atlantic Council meeting of NATO defense ministers at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, the Defense Ministers of Finland and Slovenia, Antti Häkkänen and Borut Sajovic, signed a Letter of Intent (LoI), paving the way for Slovenia’s purchase of Patria AMV XP 8×8 wheeled armored personnel carriers.
Photo: Ministry of Defense of Slovenia
“Finland will play a significant role in the upcoming deal. Finland has developed armored vehicle products and their operation both within the Defense Forces and the industry, and this expertise is being offered to Slovenia as part of the future vehicle purchase from Patria. Finland’s expertise in armored vehicles is among the best in the world,” says Defense Minister Häkkänen.
As part of the agreement, both countries declare their mutual willingness to cooperate and ensure that Slovenia will receive Finnish support in the purchase of 8×8 armored vehicles from Patria Land Oyj.
“Based on recent completed vehicle deals, it is great to see that the Ministry of Defense’s export promotion efforts have been effective and that the intergovernmental trade model established by the Ministry has proven to be highly functional. The success of intergovernmental deals is the result of many years of trust-building and smooth cooperation between all parties,” says Defense Minister Häkkänen.
The Letter of Intent between the Ministry of Defense of Slovenia and the Ministry of Defense of Finland was jointly prepared by both parties and signed by the defense ministers of both countries. However, the agreement is not legally binding but paves the way for further negotiations.
Photos: Patria Oyj
Analysis
On July 12, 2023, the then Minister of Defense of Slovenia, Marjan Šarec, gave an interview to RTV Slovenija, in which he mentioned, among other things, the ministry’s interest in acquiring new 8×8 wheeled armored personnel carriers.
Slovenia has committed to NATO to form a Medium Battalion Battle Group (Srednja bataljonska bojna skupina), consisting of a mechanized infantry battalion and a reconnaissance battalion. This formation would be smaller than a mechanized brigade, with a maximum of 3,000 soldiers. It would have the capability to operate independently for 72 hours without allied support.
As a result, the acquisition of new 8×8 wheeled armored personnel carriers is required. Previously, the government canceled a contract last year with the ARTEC (ARmoured vehicle TEChnology) joint venture for the purchase of 45 GTK Boxer vehicles, a deal initiated by its predecessors (originally planning to order 48 in 2018).
Minister Marjan Šarec revealed at the time that the ministry had received five offers from potential foreign suppliers. According to RTV Slovenija, the bidders were Patria from Finland, MOWAG from Romania, Rosomak from Poland, Otokar Automotive from Turkey, and General Dynamics Land Systems from the United States.
AMV XP 8×8
The AMV XP (eXtra Payload, eXtra Performance, eXtra Protection), first introduced in 2013, is a heavier and modernized version of the AMV (XC-360P) wheeled armored vehicle. The new vehicle is equipped with a 612-horsepower Scania DC13 diesel engine with a displacement of 12.7 liters, a ZF Ecolife automatic transmission, and an Ametek 450 kW cooling system. It features larger 16.00R20 wheels with central tire inflation and Hutchinson Run Flat inserts, as well as a hydropneumatic suspension system with adjustable ground clearance. The AMV XP offers an increased payload capacity of up to 15 tons and a maximum combat weight of 32 tons. Structural reinforcements include a strengthened hull, suspension mounts, drive shafts, suspension system, and wheel hubs.
The Patria AMV XP has so far been selected by Japan under the WAPC (Wheeled Armoured Personnel Carrier) program and by Slovakia as the Vydra, equipped with the domestically developed EVPU TURRA 30 turret system, for the combat variant.
Previously, the AMV XP was unsuccessfully offered to: the United Arab Emirates, in the AMV XP L extended version, with a BMP-3 turret, Australia, for the Mounted Combat Reconnaissance Capability Land 400 Phase 2 program (where the Boxer CRV was selected), Bulgaria, which ultimately chose the ICV Stryker, and Poland, where it was proposed as the Rosomak XP for the Serwal program.
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