Chad’s military led by strongman Mahamat Idriss Déby in a new move, has ordered sixty armoured vehicles from Emirati armour maker -The Armored Group (TAG).
To better handle the rebellion in Chad, Idriss Déby -leader of a new Transitional Military Council (CMT) -has placed an order for sixty armoured vehicles made in the United Arab Emirates.
The armoured vehicles are the Terrier LT-79 built completely on Toyota 79 chasis.
Since April, Chad’s military has been fighting with northern rebels that led to the death of President Idriss Deby on the front line. The rebel group Front for Change and Concord in Chad (FACT) crossed the border from Libya in April to oppose Deby’s 39-year rule.
The subsequent death of Deby has plunged the country into crisis.
The Terrier LT-79 armoured vehicle’s ballistic and blast protection of STANAG 4569 level I ensures survivability in IED-filled environment.
The type comes with a standard three-door configuration with a 2+6 seating arrangement and armor to protect against 7.62 mm machine gun rounds in addition to ballistic pritection of up to STANAG 4569 Level I.
Recent Chadian military procurement highlights the policy of pivot from Eastern Europe’s sphere of influence in the area of military equipment.
Chad seeking alternative arms suppliers different from the usual Eastern bloc namely Ukrainian and Russian to modernize its capabilities.
The country recently acquired 30 heavily upgraded Type 59G main battle tanks from China to supplement the outdated Russian-made T-55 main battle tanks in use on the frontline.
Chad is a key power in central Africa and a longtime Western ally against rebel fighters and terrorism across the Sahel region.
Early this year, France delivered at least nine ERC-90 Sagaie light tanks to Chad, to be used in it’s peacekeeping and counter-terror operations. The ERC-90 Sagaie are armed with a 90 mm main gun and two 7.62 mm machine gun.
Meanwhile, in 2019 the Chadian government signed a contract with Nigeria’s Proforce Defence for the sale of twenty improved Ara 2 mine-resistant ambush-protected (MRAP) vehicles.
In addition, in July last year, the United States has delivered 28 David light armored vehicles designed by Alabama-based MDT Armor Corporation, to the Chadian military to support it’s G5 Sahel counterterror commitments.