Army high officials depart to Netherlands to view Leopard tanks

Dicky Christanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Mon, 01/30/2012

Army spokesman Brig. Gen. Wiryantoro said a team of Army generals led by deputy Army chief of staff Lt. Gen. Budiman had departed to the Netherlands to take a closer look at Leopard tanks that the Army was interested in purchasing.

“The team is tasked with making an assessment over many aspects, one of them being to take closer look at the tanks’ real condition,” Wiryantoro told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

He said the results of the visit will be given to the public once the team returned.

The Army has allocated US$280 million to purchase 100 used Leopard tanks from the Netherlands this year. However, the idea has drawn controversy, with some people criticizing the tanks as being too big and thus not appropriate for the country’s geography.