Croatia will procure anti-drone systems, French-made howitzers, German Leopard tanks and hundreds of heavy trucks worth almost €2bn as part of a sweeping military modernisation effort backed by an EU defence loan, the government said on December 4.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said the acquisitions were being financed through the EU’s SAFE instrument and would help Croatia meet the capability targets it committed to at recent Nato summits. Croatia is among the European Nato members ramping up defence spending since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. 

“All of these investments will contribute to us fulfilling the goals we took on as a country,” he told reporters after a cabinet meeting.

The procurement package includes 18 French CAESAR self-propelled howitzers, 44 Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks, 420 TATRA heavy off-road trucks and new anti-drone protection systems for critical military sites and a medium infantry brigade.

Defence Minister Ivan Anušić said the plan reflects the government’s commitment to strengthening the Croatian Army, calling the anti-drone systems a “strategic step forward” that would also bolster the domestic defence industry.

Under the anti-drone programme, Croatia will buy two stationary systems for protecting key military facilities and two mobile systems integrated into vehicles. The defence ministry will sign a five-year framework agreement with Končar-Digital, which will integrate and partly manufacture equipment from Poland’s APS, enabling technology transfer to Croatia. The programme is valued at €156.3mn, to be financed from the defence budget between 2026 and 2029.

The government also approved the purchase of 18 CAESAR MK2 155mm howitzers via a joint order with Estonia, Bulgaria, Portugal and Slovenia coordinated through the French Armaments Agency. The deal, worth €328.1mn and funded through the EU SAFE instrument, covers artillery systems as well as targeting, fire-control, communications and support vehicles. Deliveries are expected in 2030.

Croatia will also acquire 44 German Leopard 2A8 tanks, including three simulators, spare parts and logistical support. The total value of the package is €1.5bn, of which €1.1bn will be financed through the SAFE loan from 2026 to 2030. A further €343.6mn — covering warranty services, price escalation and VAT — will come from the national defence budget through 2033. Deliveries are scheduled from 2028 to 2030.

Anušić noted that Croatia will pay €144.8mn less for the tanks after Germany refunded Zagreb for the vehicles and ammunition it transferred to Ukraine in late 2024.

The cabinet also approved the purchase of 420 TATRA heavy off-road trucks via a joint procurement with Slovakia, executed through the Czech Defence Ministry. The €212.3mn cost will also be covered by the SAFE instrument, with deliveries to run from 2025 to 2030.

A related agreement will enable Croatia’s Đuro Đaković Special Vehicles to undertake final assembly and maintenance of the trucks domestically. The TATRA vehicles meet NATO protection standards and are used by 21 allied countries, Anušić said.

Framework agreements for the howitzers and tanks are due to be signed next week in France and Germany.