LUGANSK (Sputnik) – Latvia has given a batch of Finnish Patria armored personnel carriers to the 3rd Assault Brigade of the Ukrainian armed forces, mostly made up of former fighters of Ukraine’s Azov regiment*, Andrei Marochko, a retired army officer of the Lugansk People’s Republic and a military expert, told Sputnik on Saturday.
«The promised batch of Patria armored personnel carriers has already been given to the 3rd Assault Brigade of the Ukrainian armed forces, mostly made up of former Azov fighters, which is now trying to stop the advance of Russian forces in the Kharkov region. These wheeled armored personnel carriers can be used to transport storm troopers, provide unit mobility and fire support in combat, as well as to support offensive and defensive operations,» Marochko said.
On July 15, Latvian Prime Minister Evika Silina said that she had arrived in Kiev.
In November 2024, Finland’s Patria company said that the Latvian defense ministry had signed a deal on purchase of 56 Patria 6×6 armored personnel carriers within the framework of the Common Armored Vehicle System (CAVS) program. The contract was worth a total of 60 million euros ($69.6 million).
The Kremlin repeatedly stressed that pumping Ukraine with weapons from the West simply fuel the conflict.
*designated as terrorist and banned in Russia
