North Macedonia will continue the procurement of the JLTV in 2023, including the Heavy Guns Carrier A1 (JLTV-HGCA1) pictured, six of which entered service in mid-2022, all equipped with the Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace M153 Protector Common Remotely Operated Weapon Station carrying an M2HB-QCB (Heavy Barrel-Quick Change Barrel) 50 calibre (12.7×99 mm NATO) machine gun. (Igor Bozinovski)
The Macedonian parliament approved a 2023 national budget on 23 December that includes EUR274.6 million (over USD292 million) for defence. EUR88.79 million of this amount will be invested in modernising the Army of the Republic of North Macedonia (ARSM).
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said in a press conference in Skopje on 21 December that the 2023 defence budget is 24.45% higher than the 2022 one and represents 1.85% of GDP. Defence Minister Slavjanka Petrovska expressed the goal of reaching 2% of GDP in 2024.
Petrovska said that 33% of the 2023 defence budget was allocated to equipment and modernisation. This includes the ongoing procurement of Joint Light Tactical Vehicles (JLTVs), Stryker Infantry Carrier Vehicles, and a French-made very short-range air-defence (VSHORAD) system; acquisition of special-purpose vehicles; the general overhaul of helicopters; procurement of communication equipment for the JLTVs and Strykers; acquisition of portable anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs); equipment for reconnaissance units; and procurement of IT, cyber-defence, and other equipment mainly for the ARSM's NATO-declared Light Infantry Battalion Group.
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