US awards USD 591 mn contract to supply military vehicles to Lithuania, others: Pentagon

US military has awarded a USD 591 million contract to Wisconsin-based Oshkosh Defense LLC to supply approximately 1,669 Joint Light Tactical Vehicle trucks, 868 JLTV trailers, and associated kits and parts to the government of Lithuania as a part of the US-Lithuania Defense Cooperation Strategic Roadmap signed between the two countries in 2019. The plan entailed the security cooperation priorities the United States and Lithuania agreed to focus on from 2019 to 2024.

“Work will be performed in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 31, 2023,” the US Department of Defense informed in a release. The military vehicles will also be provided to the governments of Slovenia, Montenegro, Iceland, and Brazil, the release added. 

The US also handed Boeing Co., in Pennsylvania a contract to procure six MH47-G renew rotary-wing aircraft and eight spare ship-sets in support of US Special Operations Command. Carahsoft Technology Corp in Reston was asked to secure product support for current licenses subscription software maintenance for the Army Enterprise with the deadline for Nov. 30, 2022. A separate contract to replace an existing taxiway at Joint Base Andrews was also awarded.

US-Lithuania step up security cooperation in Baltic Sea region

The US and Lithuania agreed to strengthen the existing defense cooperation in training, exercises, and military exchanges for the security of the Baltic Sea region. The US, as per the defense pact signed with Lithuania, would be providing support to improve maritime domain awareness in the Baltic Sea, which includes intelligence-sharing, surveillance, and early-warning capabilities in the region.

The Lithuania-US defense roadmap was the first of these agreements to be signed that would also shape the two countries’ upcoming military staff talks. The Baltic Sea region favours the maritime status quo with Russia, and Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania face the maritime threat on its facilities, territorial waters, exclusive economic zones, or other littoral areas. Since 2014, the United States has invested nearly $80 million for defense security cooperation in Lithuania, and Lithuania has committed more than $200 million in national funds to purchase US defense articles.