VN1 APC - in this photograph fitted with a 30 mm autocannon in a turret |
Source: Defensa.com
Author's opinion: The Argentine military uses a lot of really outdated equipment, so seeing them modernize their equipment and buying new APCs is not a surprise.
The fact that they went with the VN1 from Norinco however surprises me in multiple ways. First of all Chinese vehicles do have some kind of bad reputation and despite China's size and growing influence over the past years, they still lack noteworthy success on the export market.
Argentina has bought equipment from European and American companies, with the majority of the medium weight vehicles being based on Thyssen-Henschel's TAM plattform.
It seems that the Chinese VN1 comes at a lower price than most of it's competitors, otherwise I would not see advantages of buying the VN1 instead of higher performance vehicles from the US or Europe. If this move was correct for the Argentinian army is questionable.
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