Belgium to acquire nine CAESAR SPHs

Belgium is to acquire nine CAESAR NG SPHs under the expansion of the Capacité Motorisée (CaMo) programme with France. (DGMR)

Belgium is to acquire nine CAESAR NG (new generation) self-propelled howitzers (SPHs) under the expansion of the Capacité Motorisée (Motorised Capability, CaMo) programme with France, the ministries of defence (MoDs) of the two countries announced on 13 May. Belgian Defence Minister Ludivine Dedonder and her French counterpart, Florence Parly, signed the CaMo 2 intergovernmental agreement on the EUR62 million (USD65 million) procurement of the SPHs for delivery in 2027. The French and Belgian MoDs expected the Direction générale de l'armement (DGA), France's defence procurement agency, to announce the contract in the coming weeks.

The contract will cover joint and integrated training intended to achieve plug and fight interoperability between Belgian and French combat units, as well as nine digitised CAESAR NGs, including communication and information system equipment and the equipment and software necessary to integrate the SPHs into a digitised network. It also includes tools, documentation, and equipment to programme ammunition and fire-control systems (FCSs) and their software.