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Lithuania buys 88 Boxer armored vehicles in $441 million deal

Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann will supply the multirole vehicles.

By Geoff Ziezulewicz
Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann will supply Lithuania's military with 88 Boxer armored vehicles as part of an approximately $441 million deal, Rheinmetall announced Monday. Some of Germany's Boxers are shown here in Afghanistan in 2011. Photo by NATO/Flickr
Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann will supply Lithuania's military with 88 Boxer armored vehicles as part of an approximately $441 million deal, Rheinmetall announced Monday. Some of Germany's Boxers are shown here in Afghanistan in 2011. Photo by NATO/Flickr

VILNIUS, Lithuania, Aug. 22 (UPI) -- Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann will supply Lithuania's military with 88 Boxer armored vehicles as part of an approximately $441 million deal, Rheinmetall announced Monday.

The deal is set to run from 2017 to 2021, the company said in a statement.

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It makes Lithuania the third NATO nation behind Germany and the Netherlands to field the high-mobility combat vehicle.

The order was placed via the Organization for Joint Armament Cooperation, and the vehicles will be configured as infantry fighting vehicles armed with a turret-mounted 30mm automatic cannon.

The 8x8 vehicle offers mobility on and off the road and is powered by a turbo-charged diesel engine, allowing it to reach speeds of more than 60 mph with a combat weight of 36.5 tons.

Germany has 405 Boxers in its inventory, while Netherlands has 200.

The vehicles have been deployed in Afghanistan.

Lithuania's military will call the vehicles "Vilkas," which means "wolf," Rheinmetall said.

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