Rheinmetall head wants faster progress on Franco-German tank project

The chief executive of German arms maker Rheinmetall, Armin Papperger, advocated faster progress in the Franco-German tank project MGCS during a visit by Defence Ministers Boris Pistorius and Sébastien Lecornu on Thursday.

"We want to become faster together in the Main Ground Combat System. This is the desire of both politics and industry," Papperger said at the Rheinmetall plant in the small community of Unterlüss in the northern state of Lower Saxony.

A production concept is to be developed together with partner companies Thales and KNDS in the coming months as the next step towards a prototype, Papperger said.

Lecornu was particularly interested in new technologies on site, such as connectivity and unmanned driving. "I am firmly convinced that this will not be the last visit from the French defence minister here," said Papperger.

According to the German Armed Forces, the Bundeswehr, the MGCS project is intended to replace the Leopard 2 battle tank. The plan is for a modular system with an identical vehicle hull, a more powerful main weapon, an unmanned turret and modern protection systems against drones.

He said he feels political support. "I am very satisfied with our Defence Minister [Pistorius], and I am also very satisfied with what the Chancellor [Friedrich Merz] is currently doing," said Papperger.

Pistorius and Lecornu were visiting the arms factory as many European nations plan a huge increase in defence spending.

After the site visit, the ministers are set to hold talks on military cooperation and the situation in Ukraine.