April 2, 2024:
France has been organizing a NATO brigade in Romania, another NATO member that shares a border with Ukraine. Currently the French led force in Romania has 1,500 French troops and that will increase to 4,000 in 2025. Equipment will eventually include 50 Leclerc tanks. These 54-ton armored vehicles have a 120mm gun with an auto loader and a very effective fire control system that enables the Leclerc to fire shells accurately at targets 4,000 meters away while it and the targets are moving. For artillery the brigade will have Caesar truck-mounted 155mm howitzers. Caesar can achieve a firing rate of up to 6 rounds per minute. It can also operate in multiple round simultaneous impact (MRSI) mode. Mobility is provided through a 6×6 or 8×8 wheel drive heavy truck, powered by a 320 hp engine. The 155mm howitzer can fire shells at ranges of 30 and 80 kilometers depending on the type of shell. The brigade will also receive armored personnel carriers and eventually have several hundred armored vehicles by the time formation of the brigade is complete in 2025.