The State Secretary at the Slovenian Ministry of Defence, Dr Damir Črnčec, and the National Armaments Director at the Ministry of Defence of the French Republic, General Gaël Diaz de Tuesta, have signed a Letter of Intent on the European joint procurement of Caesar self-propelled Howitzer (SPH) and Mistral man-portable air-defense Systems (MANPADS). The Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Slovenia and the Government of the French Republic on defense cooperation also provides for cooperation in the field of design, implementation and procurement of armaments. The signing of the Letter of Intent will facilitate further discussions on the potential procurement of Caesar and Mistral from French manufacturers.
The possible acquisition of these weapon systems will be carried out under the same conditions as for all the other countries that have already or will join this initiative, with the signature of the Letter of Intent. The signing of the Letter of Intent will initiate all the necessary procedures at the Ministry of Defence for the eventual procurement and introduction of entirely new weapon systems into the Slovenian Armed Forces. At the same time, this will fulfil the condition for submitting an application for European funding for the construction of joint military capabilities.
The CAESAR (Camion Équipé d’un Système d’Artillerie, Truck equipped with an artillery system) is a French 155 mm, 52-caliber self-propelled howitzer that can fire 39/52 caliber NATO-standard shells. It is installed on a 6×6 or 8×8 truck chassis. Equipped with an autonomous weapon network incorporating an inertial navigation system and ballistic computer, the CAESAR can accurately strike targets more than 40 kilometres (25 mi) away using “Extended Range, Full Bore” (ERFB) ammunition with base bleed, or targets over 55 kilometres (34 mi) away using rocket-assisted or smart ammunition. The CAESAR was developed by French defense contractor GIAT Industries (now Nexter Systems) and has been exported to various countries.
The Mistral (Missile Transportable Anti-aérien Léger, Transportable lightweight anti-air missile) is a French infrared homing short range air defense system manufactured by MBDA France. Mistral is a short-range air defence (SHORAD) missile system that can be used from vehicles, surface ships, and helicopters, as well as in a portable configuration. When used in the MANPADS role the “Mistral” missile is transported in a transport and launch container (MPC) together with “friend or foe” interrogator, power source and tripod with its sighting devices. The first version of the system was introduced in 1988 (S1), the second in 1997 (Mistral 2), and the third in 2018 (Mistral 3).
