Army says Stryker deal on hold while Covid-19 battle rages
A military source confirmed on Wednesday (April 22) that the Army will not procure Stryker armoured vehicles this fiscal year, after Ordnance Department documents leaked online appeared to show the deal was going ahead.
The leaked documents said the Army planned to procure 50 armoured vehicles from the United States via its Foreign Military Sales (FMS) programme.
Netizens responded by saying that the money for the Stryker vehicles should instead be spent on the far more urgent battle against Covid-19. In 2019, the Army struck a US$80-million (Bt2.6-billion) deal with the US to buy 60 Strykers.
The source said that Army chief General Apirat Kongsompong has cut 30 per cent of the Army’s budget to support the government’s efforts to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic.
The source also said that numerous other weapon procurements had been suspended at this time. The Stryker deal, a project of fiscal year 2020, was moved to fiscal year 2021 and 2022 as part of the ongoing procurement programme between Thailand and the US.