 As of 2006, Taiwan at one point expressed interest as a replacement for its fleet of M24 Chaffee/M41 Walker Bulldog light tanks but would not commit following cancellation by the US.BAE Systems (which bought United Defense in 2005) was awarded a contract, along with General Dynamics, by the US Army as part of the Mobile Protected Firepower program on 17 December 2018 to create an air transportable light tank to assist infantry brigades in forced entry operations; BAE submitted an updated M8 design with new capabilities and components.Requirements called for a tracked vehicle armed with a 105 mm or 120 mm cannon, which would not need to be air-droppable, but two would fit in a C-17 Globemaster and land on an airfield secured by infantry.