Kazakhstan Paramount Engineering (KPE) – a joint venture between global aerospace and technology business Paramount Group and Kazakhstani defence and engineering company Kazpetromash – has delivered a new shipment of Arlan 4 x 4 armoured personnel carriers (APCs) to Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Defence in accordance with that nation’s State Defence Order.

The delivery comes amid Russia’s invasion of nearby Ukraine, which began on February 24. Both Ukraine and Kazakhstan were formerly part of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), and various political leaders and geopolitical analysts fear that Russian President Vladimir Putin might have ambitions to reconstitute it through further invasions. The hope is that Kazakhstan’s membership of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) will deter any Russian incursion into the country.

Over the past four years, KPE has delivered several batches of Arlan APCs to the Armed Forces of Kazakhstan. 

The Arlan, which is the winterised variant of Paramount Group’s Marauder, is a mine-resistant armoured platform designed to operate in extreme environments to meet the ever-growing array of mission requirements undertaken by Kazakhstan’s Armed Forces, such as quick reaction force operations, infantry fire support or long-range border patrol. 

The vehicle is adaptable to the diverse conditions of Kazakhstan and the greater Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), which was formed after the dissolution of the USSR in 1991. The CIS includes Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan.

The Arlan APCs offer pre-ignition engine heating and a dynamic temperature control system that can carry personnel safely and comfortably in winter conditions as cold as -50 °C and summer temperatures of up to 50 °C.

The Arlan armoured vehicles are all manufactured in Kazakhstan – comprising up to 70% local content – at the 15 000 m² KPE armoured vehicle production facility, in Nursultan, one of the largest and most modern armoured vehicle factories in the region. 

More than 200 Kazakhstanis are currently employed by KPE, providing modern equipment for Kazakhstan's Special Operations Forces and its Ministry of Defence. The facilities serve as a centre for excellence and high-skills employment, with the capacity to produce hundreds of armoured vehicles each year. 

“The Covid-19 pandemic, and particularly its direct ramifications to global supply chains, has underscored the critical impetus behind governments honing their home-grown capabilities and emboldening their defence industrial complexes to remain resilient in the face of often-fluctuating circumstances and their exogenous aftershocks,” said Paramount Land Systems executive chairperson John Craig on February 28.

The Arlan can withstand the debris and dissipating energy of explosions, while its double-skin spaced armour provides ample security. It also features blast protection at Nato’s Standardisation Agreement 4569 Levels 3a and 3b, and has stopping power against a 50 kg trinitrotoluene side blast, protecting personnel against roadside bombs and improvised explosive devices.

The vehicle also has 8 kg blast protection under the hull. Arlan APCs can reach speeds of up to 120 km/h for a range of 700 km.

In addition to the Arlan’s advanced protections and durability – with a kerb weight of 13 500 kg and offering up to a 4 500 kg payload – the versatile APCs can ford at 1.2 m and are capable of climbing gradients of 60% and side slopes of 35%.

The interoperable vehicle, accommodating two crew members and up to seven troops, is further equipped with a nuclear, biological and chemical protection system, which can address the challenges of radiation dust spread, gas and biological attacks, along with a mechanical 12.7 mm turret.

The Arlan can carry extra fuel tanks, water and additional combat supplies, with optional add-ons, including a winterisation kit and central tyre inflation system, alongside various weapon and fire suppression systems.

“In 2022, maintaining security of supply in the defence arena will be a key priority for governments across the globe,” Craig concluded.