“By making advance payments, we ensure that military equipment urgently needed by the Lithuanian Armed Forces will be delivered earlier,” said Minister of National Defence Dovilė Šakalienė. “In this case, it concerns 27 additional ‘Boxer-Vilkas’ infantry fighting vehicles, scheduled for delivery between 2027 and 2029, and NASAMS air defence systems, expected in 2028.”
Minister Šakalienė added that earlier payments are essential for Lithuania to maintain priority in the supply chain and meet its goal of establishing a National Division by 2030. “We constantly seek to pay as early as possible so that our orders come earlier in the queue,” she stated.
Vice-Minister of Finance Darius Sadeckas explained that this is the first allocation funded under an increased borrowing limit approved last year. “While adjusting the budget last year, we raised the state borrowing limit by €800 million, thereby creating the possibility to allocate additional funds for national defence when specific needs arise,” said Sadeckas.
The allocation responds to an April 7 request from the Ministry of National Defence, which highlighted the need to make a €150 million advance payment for the infantry fighting vehicles and €37.7 million for the NASAMS systems. These systems are intended for the development of the National Infantry Division.
According to the 2025–2027 Budget Approval Act, the Ministry of Finance is authorised to borrow for national defence needs. This includes funding for military mobility, dual-use transport infrastructure, host nation support infrastructure, and capital investments in Lithuania’s emerging defence industry.
Source: Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Lithuania.
