The Argentine Minister of Defense, Agustin Rossi, traveled to the Federative Republic of Brazil where he was received by the ambassador to that neighboring country, Daniel Scioli and – under a strict sanitary protocol. Agustin Rossi toured with his Brazilian counterpart, Fernando Azevedo e Silva , the industrial plant of IVECO located in Sete Lagoas (State of Minas Gerais), where the Guaranà 6×6 armored vehicles are manufactured in association with the Brazilian Army. The Guaranà armored vehicles (their engine and chassis) is manufactured in Argentina, more precisely at the IVECO plant in Cordova.
The VBTP-MR Guarani (Viatura Blindada Transporte de Pessoal – Média de Rodas or Armored Personnel Carrier Vehicle – Medium Wheeled Type) is a 6×6 armoured personnel carrier developed by Iveco and the Brazilian Army as part of its “URUTU-III” modernization program aimed to replace all EE-11 Urutu by 2015. The 8×8 version of the VBTP-MR is the base of Iveco’s Superav armoured personnel carrier. The Brazilian Army has signed with Iveco a contract worth about €2.5 billion for supplying armoured personnel carriers of the VBTP-MR model. In the program other Brazilian Companies also participated, such as IMBEL (Communications), ELBIT (Armaments), Usiminas and Villares (development of national ballistic structural steel).
Compared to the model in use today by the Brazilian Army, the new project brings advantages such as upgraded armor protection, increased mobility, increased range, independent hydropneumatic suspension, increased protection against mines, better ergonomics, air conditioning, brake system with double disc and ABS, GPS, automatic detection and extinguishing of fire, night operation capability as standard and laser detection system. Brazil has already sold vehicles to Latin America, Africa and Asia-Pacific in the past. The Argentine Army expressed interest in an 8×8 version. Armies also from Chile, Colombia and Ecuador showed interest in the Guarani.
