The new VBMT-LSR Guaicurus vehicles will include configurations with the new Ares REMAX 4 remotely controlled weapon station. (Victor Barreira)

The Manufacturing Directorate of the Brazilian Army plans to acquire up to 420 new Iveco Defence Vehicles (IDV) Light Multirole Vehicles (LMVs).

The IDV and the Army High Staff signed a protocol of intent on 17 April to pave the way for this acquisition. Designated Viatura Blindada Multitarefa Leve Sobre Rodas (VBMT-LSR) Guaicurus in Brazil, the 4×4 vehicle project is part of the army's Strategic Program Armoured Forces (Programa Estratégico do Exército Forças Blindadas: Prg EE F Bld).

The contract for the acquisition is currently being drafted, according to the army's projects office.

The Brazilian LMV will be acquired in different configurations, the army's Manufacturing Directorate told Janes in 2023.

The original VBMT-LSR project called for acquiring an initial batch of 32 LMVs and placing subsequent orders for two tranches of 77 vehicles each. The plan has since evolved to procuring 420 vehicles, thanks to ordering fewer new IDV VBTP-MSR Guarani 6×6 armoured vehicles than originally planned, a defence sector source told Janes .

A Spanish NASAMS anti-air defence unit (UDAA) has been deployed in Estonia since April 2023. (GBAD Task Force Estonia)

The Spanish government has announced the EUR410 million (USD438 million) modernisation and acquisition of additional National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMSs), Kongsberg announced in a press release on 19 April.

The Dirección General de Armamento y Material (DGAM), the Spanish Armaments Directorate, approved a contract for the modernisation of Spain's NASAMS on 19 April. Kongsberg expected the contract to be signed in May 2024.

The NASAMS modernisation includes upgrading the system's Sentinel radar, Spain's Council of Ministers announced on 9 April. The EUR45.9 million contract includes additional equipment, technical support, and auxiliary tools and equipment necessary for integration into the system, as well as related training and maintenance.

The 655 AIM-120C-8 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAMs) that the US Congress announced would be provided to Spain in early December 2023 include NASAMS missiles.

Spain was the first export customer for NASAMS, which it has operated for over 20 years.

Mbombe 6 with Spys ROWS seen in Ukraine. (General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine)

A video released by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on 18 April shows a South African Mbombe 6 6×6 armoured vehicle equipped with a Ukrainian remotely operated weapon system (ROWS).

The video shows the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi, being presented with and inspecting several armoured vehicles, including the Mbombe, at an undisclosed location.

The Mbombe 6 is a wheeled armoured personnel carrier (APC) designed and manufactured in South Africa by Paramount Group, as well as under licence in India, Jordan, and Kazakhstan. The vehicle comes with an all-welded steel armour construction providing protection against small-arms fire up to NATO Standardization Agreement (STANAG) 4569 Level 4 standards.

The vehicle features a mine-resistant honeycomb flat-bottomed hull design, which lowers its overall height and provides protection against a 10 kg anti-tank mine detonated underneath the hull or a wheel station.