Latvia is procuring 42 ASCOD IFVs. (GDELS)
Latvian National Armaments Director Major General Andis Dilāns and General Dynamics European Land Systems (GDELS) – Santa Bárbara Sistemas vice-president Alejandro Page Hernandez signed a EUR373 million (USD387 million) contract on 30 January on the procurement of 42 ASCOD infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) for the Latvian National Armed Forces. Later the same day, a GDELS press release said the contract is for an initial batch of ASCOD vehicles and includes logistic support.
A GDELS spokesperson told Janes on 3 February that his company has a two-year delivery plan, with the first deliveries to take place in 2026 and deliveries to be completed during 2027. Asked by Janes how many more will be ordered and when, he said, “Any potential follow-up is optional.” He noted that the first batch were all IFVs, with the possibility of ordering other versions in the future based on the same ASCOD Common Base Platform (CBP).
The GDELS press release included a photo of an ASCOD vehicle equipped with composite rubber tracks from Soucy and the MT30 two-man turret from Elbit Systems armed with an MK44 Bushmaster 30 mm automatic cannon. The GDELS spokesperson said, “The photo shows the vehicle tested during the trials. The final configuration will be close to that but we cannot release specific details at this stage.”
The Latvian Ministry of Defence (MoD) said in a press release on 30 January that the IFVs have NATO Standardization Agreement (STANAG) 4569 level 4 armour, an automatic cannon, anti-tank weapons, a machine gun, and battlefield situational awareness technologies. The vehicle has a crew of three and can carry and deploy six soldiers with full combat equipment.
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