Turkish defense giant Otokar has made the first shipment of its COBRA II 4x4 vehicles to Romania as part of Türkiye's largest single-item armored land vehicle export contract, a report by Anadolu Agency (AA) said on Tuesday.
Otokar, which signed a contract last year for the supply of 1,059 COBRA II 4x4 armored vehicles for the needs of the Romanian Ministry of Defense, continues to work intensively at its facilities in northwestern Sakarya province due to its ambitious delivery schedule.
The report said that the first COBRA II vehicles produced in Türkiye had arrived in Romania.
As part of the supply contract, the production of the first 278 COBRA IIs to be manufactured in Türkiye will be carried out at the Sakarya factory. The subsystems to be supplied by local manufacturers for these vehicles will be integrated in Romania.
Moreover, within the scope of the export contract, COBRA II vehicles will be produced abroad for the first time in the future.
Otokar recently took an important step in line with its commitments to Romania by signing an agreement with Automecanica S.A., one of the country's leading defense industry companies, to establish a joint venture company in Romania to carry out local production and develop defense industry capabilities in the country. The first vehicle delivery to the Romanian Ministry of Defense will begin in the last quarter of 2025.
Within the scope of the project, COBRA II variants suitable for different missions will be produced in line with Romania's needs and demands.
The contract covers 10 different variants consisting of a personnel carrier, reconnaissance vehicle, personnel carrier-remote controlled weapon system, anti-tank vehicle, anti-tank command vehicle, 120 mm mortar carrier, 81 mm mortar carrier, engineering vehicle, CBRN reconnaissance vehicle and ambulance.
Romania will be the ninth country in Europe to use Otokar's defense industry solutions.
