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I didn't understand the above picture. Anybody please explain?
Deal is supposed to be finalised by the end of this year.
I would prefer German subs over the French.
what happened to the Marlin offer? There were lot of news about PN buying Marlins.
From the German News service
Deutsche U-Boote für Pakistan?
Deutsche Firmen um die Kieler Werft HDW verhandeln derzeit mit Pakistan über die Lieferung von drei U-Booten. Das berichtet das Berliner Informationszentrum für Transatlantische Sicherheit (BITS). Demnach will Pakistan drei U-Boote kaufen und im eigenen Land zusammenbauen. Aus Deutschland sollen dazu vorgefertigte U-Bootsektionen geliefert werden.
Für mehr als eine Milliarde Euro bei dem 1,2 Milliarden Euro teuren Projekt solle der deutsche Steuerzahler bürgen. Das gehe aus einer internen Vorlage des Finanzministeriums hervor, die dem Haushaltsausschuss des Bundestages kürzlich vorgelegt worden sei, so das BITS.
Weiter fahren, länger tauchen, kaum zu orten
[Bildunterschrift: U-Boote des Typs 214 werden von in Kiel bei der Werft HDW gebaut]
Bei der geplanten Lieferung handele es sich den Angaben zufolge um U-Boote vom neusten Typ U-214, die speziell für den Export entwickelt wurden. Griechenland und Südkorea haben ihn bereits bestellt, die Griechen ein erstes Boot erhalten. Die 65 Meter langen Schiffe sind gröÃer als die U-Boote der Klassen 212A, die die Bundeswehr beschafft. Sie verfügen über einen modifizierten Brennstoffzellenantrieb, der sie von der AuÃenluft unabhängig macht. Damit können die Boote deutlich gröÃere Strecken absolvieren und länger tauchen als konventionelle Diesel-U-Boote. Zudem sind sie kaum zu orten. Die U-Boote sind mit acht Torpedorohren des Standardkalibers 533 Millimeter ausgerüstet, von denen aus Torpedos, Flugkörper und Minen eingesetzt werden können.
Pakistan - "problematisches Empfängerland"
Das BITS kritisiert das "scheinbar normale U-Boot-Geschäft", weil es sich bei Pakistan um ein "problematisches Empfängerland" handele. Innenpolitisch ist Pakistan höchst instabil. Die prowestlich orientierte Militärregierung Pervez Muscharraf läuft Gefahr, von radikalislamischen Kräften gestürzt zu werden. Diese haben starke Verbündete, bis hinein in den Pakistanischen Geheimdienst ISI. Muscharraf selbst hatte 1999 mit einem Militärputsch die Macht übernommen.
Dem Atomwaffensperrvertrag trat das Land nie bei. Seit 1998 besitzt es Atomwaffen. Der "Vater der pakistanischen Atombombe", Abdul Qadeer Khan, gilt als Kopf des internationalen Atomschmuggels, der Nordkorea, Libyen und Iran zur Bombe verhelfen wollte. Pakistan entwickelt erfolgreich Raketen und Marschflugkörper. Es arbeitet an Nuklearwaffen, die klein und leicht genug sind, damit sie von solchen Trägersystemen transportiert werden können.
Babur-Abschuss von See in Planung
Zu den Waffenentwicklungen zählt laut BITS auch ein Marschflugkörper namens Babur, der 2005 erstmals getestet worden sein soll. Noch werden die Babur-Marschflugköper nur von Land gestartet. Eine seegestützte Version ist nach BITS-Recherchen geplant. Demnach sollen künftige U-Boote Pakistans mit Babur-Flugkörpern ausgestattet werden.
Bundesregierung offenbar bedenkenlos
Die Bundesregierung hat offenbar keine Bedenken gegen das geplante U-Boot-Geschäft. Laut BITS begründet sie ihre Unterstützung für HDW und die Mutterfirma Thyssen Krupp Marine Systems (TKMS) rein wirtschaftlich: "Mit dem Erhalt des Auftrags würde der deutsche Exporteur in die Lage versetzt, die aktuellen Entwicklungserfolge in der Technik der U-Boot-Fertigung, speziell in der Brennstoffzellenfertigung zu festigen und langfristig zu sichern. Hinzu kommen die entsprechenden Beschäftigungswirkungen (...)"
Und die Regierung sieht offenbar Perspektiven für die deutsche Rüstungsindustrie. Als beleg zitiert BITS weiter aus der internen Vorlage des Finanzministeriums: "Der Auftrag bietet zudem die Chance auf künftige Aufträge, da die pakistanische Marine angabegemäà an einer langfristigen Partnerschaft interessiert ist." Wie BITS berichtet, möchte Pakistan später weitere U-Boote ordern und zeigt sich auch an deutschen Fregatten und Korvetten des Typs MEKO A200 bzw. A100 interessiert. Deren Hersteller, Blohm & Voss, gehört ebenfalls zu TKMS.
http://www.tagesschau.de/aktuell/meldungen/0,1185,OID6664168_TYP6_THE_NAV_REF1_BAB,00.html
Hope you guys speak German aswell
I'll try to translate.
Pak Navy opts for little known German subs
By Shakil Shaikh
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has almost decided to purchase German-manufactured U-214 submarines worth $1 billion on a single source basis.
Senior officials confirmed this huge sale-purchase deal for the U-214 submarines for the Pakistan Navy but confided to The News that the offer was not in compliance with the invitation of the tender issued on May 10, 2006. Also, the submarines are not much known as no such subs are in service with any navy of the world.
The Defence Production Ministry and its technical evaluators, including senior naval officers, rejected a far-better French Marlin even without opening a tender for the said submarines for obvious reasons, alleged a senior official.
French authorities, including former French president Chirac, had protested to President General Pervez Musharraf some time back this flat rejection of their offer. The president, said the source, had assured his French counterpart that the scrutiny process of purchasing submarines would be transparent and fair. But the authorities and those linked to this project masterminded the French offer to be outclassed, though Pakistan had ordered and operated three generations of French submarines in the last 40 years.
The two last subs have been produced in Karachi by means of a successful Transfer of Technology (ToT), as key human and industrial assets are the result of a long and fruitful cooperation between Pakistan and France. This resulted in Pakistan’s joining of a very select club of submarine builders.
One senior official said that after partial selection of the German HDW (Howaldtswearke — Deutsche Werft), a senior Defence Production official, Commander Nisar Ahmed, who is assistant director Munitions Production (Navy), raised many queries on the proposal from the HDW for the construction of three conventional subs at the purchaser yard under ToT arrangements through a letter dated August 13, 2007.
It was very surprising that the officer sought information after accepting the offer of supplying three conventional U-214 subs from the German firm. The authorities made twisted general specifications, which made the whole process non-transparent and unfair, said the source.
Investigations and background briefings from officials in the Ministry of Defence Production and the Pakistan Navy revealed that following the French protest at the highest level, the Defence Production Division requested the French DCNS (Agosta-90B fame company and leader of the European market in subs production) to submit a “Scorpene” offer as Pakistan’s choice. Scorpene is one of the top class submarines and is being supplied to India as well.
However, the offer of Scorpene was rejected as it was found technically unacceptable by the Pakistan Navy, said the source, adding that no reason was given for this. A comparison between French Scorpene and German U-214 will show that Scorpene subs have been ordered by three different navies and two of them have been in service for more than two years.
Conversely, the German U-214 submarine has been ordered by two navies only and none of them is in service. In fact, the first class “Papanikolis” has been rejected twice by a NAT navy (Greek Navy). And the tender mentioned that the proposed design should be in service in a parent/foreign navy.
“As no U-214 is in service in any navy of the world, the German offer is not compliant with IT and should have been rejected,” said a senior official. The scrutiny process of selecting German subs does not take into account the existing Agosta-90B capabilities which in case of a U-214 selection have to be fully redeveloped.
The Defence Production Division, disclosed the official, refused to consider the French offer which consists of building Scorpene submarines in Karachi for export and maintaining those operated by foreign navies there. The aim of this offer is to maintain the key assets developed in the framework of the Agosta-90B contract.
However, it was shocking when the chief of naval staff and the secretary Defence Production did not reply to the DCNS chairman’s official additional offer, which consists of upgrading free of charge the three Agosta-90B’s combat management system, said the source. This offer, he said, creates added value for the Pakistan Navy and spares foreign currency to the country.
During the scrutiny, the Defence Production Division did not take into account the fact that the German offer included technologies subject to the US Congress clearance. It is a too dangerous aspect, as no Pakistani can rely on the US or its legislative forums. Pakistan is a victim of US sanctions.
“The whole matter needs to be investigated at the highest forum in Pakistan,” said a senior official, adding that the scrutiny process of purchasing German subs would create problems for naval defence in future.
Pakistan, if it goes the Germany way, would jeopardise the long cooperation established with France by avoiding competition in the $1 billion purchase of submarines. When asked why Pakistan was buying German subs instead of French, Director Munitions Production AVM Shaukat Mehmood told The News on Friday that the choice of purchasing new subs had been received from the Naval Headquarters (NHQ). “The technical committee of the Pakistan Navy has obviously carried out elaborate analysis of different options and they chose the best,” he said. “The German subs are selected by NHQ.”