Hungary ships surplus tanks to Czech Republic

BUDAPEST, Hungary, Aug. 26 (UPI) -- More than four dozen T-72 tanks are on their way to the Czech military from Hungarian Army depots.

The Hungarian Ministry of Defense said the transport of 58 surplus tanks began on Monday to an undisclosed point in the Czech Republic but offered no other details.

The Soviet-made T-72 came into production in the early 1970s. It weighs about 45 tons, has a speed of about 37 miles per hour and an operation range of about 290 miles.

Hungary said the Prague government purchased the tanks in accordance with the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe, or CFE, an international agreement which governed the number of tanks that both NATO and the Warsaw Pact could have on the Continent. It also set regulations governing the withdrawal of tanks from service and their storage and sale.

"Under the terms of the sales contract, the customer has strict liability because the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe applies to all sales of tanks, and it must also comply with the concrete regulations imposed by the Hungarian laws," Hungary's Defense Ministry said. "The customer is allowed to resell the tanks only in compliance with the relevant provisions of the CFE Treaty."