Donated T-72 Tanks arrive in Iraq

Seventy-seven tanks and four tank-recovery vehicles donated to the Iraqi armed forces by NATO member country Hungary arrived in Iraq on 11 November.

The tanks are now stationed at Taji, north of Baghdad, the headquarters of the Iraqi 9th Division (Mechanized).

Equipping Iraq’s forces

As part of its assistance to Iraq, the Alliance - through the NATO Training and Equipment Coordination Group - is coordinating training and equipment provided by NATO countries to Iraq on a bilateral basis.

The Group was established at NATO Headquarters on 8 October 2004.

To date, NATO has delivered some 26,000 light weapons, 200 rocket propelled guns, 10,000 helmets and more than 9,3 million rounds of ammunition to Iraq.

The donation of the newly refurbished tanks will enable the 9th Division to play an important role in providing security to Iraqi citizens. At present, the Division is equipped with older T-55 tanks.

The tanks were transferred from Hungary by a combination of land and sea transport.

They are expected to be operational by mid-December.