17.02.2016, 00:44
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2016/02/16/norwegian-military-close-bankruptcy-orders-personnel-turn-pistols-save-money/">http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2016 ... ave-money/</a><!-- m -->
Zitat:It seems the Norwegian military is in financial trouble! The Norwegian Ministry of Defense has issued a statement saying that they will no longer be able to equip officers and other personnel with both a rifle and pistol, and therefore pistols issued to such personnel should be turned in immediately. According to an article in AftenPosten, machine translated below:
Zitat:According to AftenPosten’s source, Lieutenant Colonel Jankov, the number of guns to be turned in numbers in the thousands. Even the Rapid Reaction Forces must turn in their pistols, as well. Pistols, being a secondary weapon, were deemed expendable items for the budget cuts. Turning in the pistols will reduce maintenance, ammunition, and training costs, as soldiers will no longer be trained on handguns as a matter of course. However, personnel deployed to combat zones will still be issued handguns, and be given the requisite training upon deployment.
The Norwegian military has experienced a significant budget drawdown in 2016. According to the article, several sections of the Norwegian armed forces are understaffed or not staffed at all. Given Norway’s close proximity to Russia, one can only speculate how the Norwegian government believes it can secure the defense of the country against growing tensions in the East.