Arms industry in Romania



Before 1989, Romania was among the top ten arms exporters in the world, however its arms industry declined considerably during the 1990s. Exports fell from roughly $1 billion before 1989 to about $43 million in 2006, and the number of employees also fell from 220,000 in 1990 to 20,000 in 2009. Sales to the Romanian Armed Forces have plunged after Romania's accession to NATO in 2004, as factories continue to produce Warsaw Pact-caliber weapons and ammunition, which are incompatible with their Western counterparts. There have also been criticisms related to the quality of Romania's military products, due to the obsolescence of factory equipment and production methods. The Cugir weapons plant, for example, still uses some machinery dated from 1890.

As of 2009, sales are roughly evenly divided between the Romanian state and foreign customers such as European Union and Arab countries such as Egypt, Algeria and Iraq. Other countries which have shown interest in Romanian equipment include Afghanistan, Israel, Switzerland, the United States, the United Arab Emirates, India, Georgia and a slew of African countries. There have been some signs of slight recovery, with exports reaching €141 million in 2009. However, the arms industry in Romania still lags behind neighboring countries such as Ukraine, Bulgaria and Serbia.

In recent years, the Romanian government has called, unsuccessfully, for the lifting of the European Union arms embargo on the People's Republic of China.

Manufacturers

 * Romtehnica
 * ROMARM
 * Uzinele Mecanice Cugir
 * Uzina Automecanica Moreni
 * Carfil Braşov
 * Industria Aeronautică Română

Small arms

 * PA md. 86 assault rifle and carbine
 * PM md. 63/65/90 assault rifle and carbine
 * Pistol model 2000 handgun
 * RATMIL SMG submachine gun
 * Mitralieră md. 93 5.45×39mm LMG
 * PM md. 64 7.62×39mm light machine gun
 * PSL sniper rifle
 * Dracula md. 98 machine pistol
 * 7.62×54mmR Machine Gun
 * 7.62×54mmR Tank Machine Gun
 * AG-7 rocket propelled grenade
 * AG-9 Rocket propelled grenade
 * CA-94 surface-to-air missile system

AFVs

 * TR-77-580 main battle tank
 * TR-85/TR-85 M1 main battle tank
 * TR-125 main battle tank
 * MLI-84/MLI-84M infantry fighting vehicle
 * TAB-77 armored personnel carrier
 * ABC-79M armored personnel carrier
 * B33 Zimbru armored personnel carrier
 * Saur 1 armored personnel carrier
 * CA-95 mobile anti-air missile system

Artillery

 * LAROM MLRS
 * ATROM 155mm self-propelled howitzer System

Aircraft

 * IAR 316
 * IAR 330
 * IAR 99
 * IAR-93

Small arms

 * Orița M1941 submachine gun
 * ZB vz. 30 machine gun (thousands produced under Czechoslovak licence)
 * Argeș flamethrower

Artillery

 * Brandt Mle 1935 mortar (hundreds produced under French licence)
 * Brandt Mle 27/31 mortar (over a thousand produced under French licence)
 * M1938 mortar (hundreds produced based on captured Soviet models)
 * 47 mm Schneider anti-tank gun (hundreds produced under French licence)
 * 75 mm Reșița Model 1943 anti-tank gun (up to 400 produced)
 * 3.7 cm Flak 18/36/37/43 anti-aircraft gun (over 360 produced under German licence)
 * Vickers Model 1931 anti-aircraft gun (200 produced under British licence)

AFVs

 * R-1 tankette (1 prototype built under Czechoslovak licence)
 * Malaxa UE armored carrier (126 built under French licence)
 * TACAM T-60 tank destroyer (34 built)
 * TACAM R-2 tank destroyer (21 built)
 * Mareșal tank destroyer (6 prototypes built)
 * Vănătorul de care R-35 tank destroyer (30 built)
 * Renault R35 with T-26 turret (1 prototype built)
 * AB md. 1941 armored car (1 prototype built)

Aircraft

 * IAR 80 fighter (346 built)
 * IAR 37 reconnaissance and light bomber (380 built)
 * IAR 27 trainer (over 200 built)
 * IAR 79 bomber (72 built)
 * SET 7 trainer and reconnaissance (123 built)

Warships

 * Amiral-Murgescu minelaying destroyer escort
 * Rechinul submarine
 * Marsuinul submarine
 * Democrația-class minesweeper (4 built)
 * Dutch-designed torpedo boats (6 built)
 * S-boats (over 10 re-assembled for the Kriegsmarine)
 * Type IIB U-boats (6 re-assembled for the Kriegsmarine)

Artillery

 * Obuzierul Krupp, calibrul 105 mm, model 1912 (120 built)
 * 250 mm Negrei Model 1916 heavy mortar (unknown numbers)
 * 57 mm Burileanu anti-aircraft gun (132 built)

Aircraft

 * A Vlaicu I trainer (1 built)
 * A Vlaicu II trainer (1 built)
 * A Vlaicu III trainer (1 built)

Warships

 * Brătianu-class river monitor (4 assembled)