battle tanks were in 1989 ordered by Cyprus and the last new variant vehicles, a batch of twenty GCTs, in 1994 by France. In the late 1990s, the French Army began to accept the new Leclerc main battle tank to replace the antiquated AMX-30. The first units to be outfitted with the new tank were the 501st and 503rd tank regiments, followed by the 6th and 12th Cuirassier Regiments. Export Having in February 1964 decided to produce its own battle tank, Israel at first considered licence production of AMX-30 hulls, while importing the turrets from France. Favoring heavier armour over mobility, Major-General Israel Tal discontinued negotiations with France when the United Kingdom agreed to allow licensed production of the Chieftain tank, in 1966. France eventually also failed to obtain orders from the remaining two FINABEL nations, Belgium and the Netherlands: the Dutch did not even test the type and the Belgians ordered the Leopard when France refused to allow partial component production of the AMX-30 in Belgium, fearing it would increase the unit cost. Less costly and easier to maintain, the AMX-30 has been preferred over the Leopard 1 by less affluent or developed nations. In 1969, the Greek military junta agreed to procure a total of 190 AMX-30s and 14 AMX-30Ds, making Greece the first foreign nation to purchase the French tank. Throughout the 1960s, Spain had considered both the AMX-30 and the Leopard 1 to complement their existing fleet of M47 and M48 Patton tanks. Ultimately, Spain opted for the AMX-30 for a variety of reasons, including British unwillingness to sell the L7 tank gun to a fascist regime and the French offer to allow the AMX-30 to be manufactured in Spain. Spain ordered 19 tanks in 1970, and later agreed to manufacture another 180 tanks in Spain. In 1979, Spain began the production of a second batch of 100 tanks, completing a total of 299 AMX-30s issued to the Spanish Army; these were designated AMX-30Es. Spain also procured 10 AMX-30Ds and 18 AMX-30Rs. As production of the AMX-30E ended in 1979, the Spanish Army was already looking for a modernization program to improve the quality of the tank's mobility. In 1987, the Spanish Army began a six-year modernization program which brought 150 tanks up to AMX-30EM2 standards and modified another 149 tanks to AMX-30EM1 standards. The former was a much more complete upgrade, which saw improvements to