UAE displays BMP-3 with new turret

The BMP-3 with the DVK-30 turret was lined up next to a Leclerc tank during the visit by Minister of Defence Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum. (UAE Ministry of Defence)

The United Arab Emirates' (UAE's) Ministry of Defence (MoD) released a video on 3 April that showed a BMP-3 infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) fitted with the DVK-30 one-man turret developed by the Slovakian company ZTS Špeciál.

This is not the first time that BMP-3s modified in this way have been seen in the UAE, as two were displayed in the background of a large parade of the National Service and Reserve Forces on 2 December 2024. The two vehicles were on the spectator side of the event, which included other types of equipment that were not previously known to be in service, rather than with main troop and vehicle formations.

The MoD said the video showed Minister of Defence Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum visiting Reserve Forces Command. However, a sign in front of the base's headquarters building said it was 5th Mechanised Infantry Brigade Command, making it more likely that the modified BMP-3 has entered service.

Russian sources have reported that the UAE received around 700 BMP-3s in the 1990s but many have had their turrets transferred to the new Rabdan 8×8 wheeled IFVs. It now appears these are being brought back into service by fitting them with the DVK-30.