Greece Plans to Buy Four New Submarines

Greece is moving forward with plans to buy at least four new submarines, as tensions with neighboring Turkey continue to grow.

Greek Defense Minister Nikos Dendias confirmed the news last week, saying the country will begin talks to replace its older submarines with modern ones.

According to Zone Militaire, Turkey’s Navy currently has 12 submarines and is building six more advanced models with help from Germany.

On top of that, Turkey has its own projects to build even more powerful submarines, including one that could carry cruise missiles and another that could be nuclear-powered in the future.

Smaller Fleet, Big Plans

Compared to Turkey, Greece has a smaller fleet with nine submarines.

These include four newer ones from the Papanikolis class and several older ones that are reaching the end of their service life.

That’s why Greece is working on a big plan to upgrade its military over the next ten years, with a budget of €25 billion.

Part of that plan includes updating the Papanikolis-class submarines.

Greek media reports say these upgrades may include adding French-made cruise missiles that can be launched from underwater.

Search for New Submarines Begins

Now, Greece is looking to replace its oldest submarine class—Glafkos—with at least four new models.

Minister Dendias said this will be done responsibly, staying within the budget and ensuring that taxpayer money is spent wisely.

Greek newspaper Ekathimerini said the goal is to keep Greece strong at sea, especially in the Aegean and Mediterranean, where tensions with Turkey are often high.

Five Models Under Consideration

The Greek Navy is looking at five different submarine designs:

• A26 model from Sweden’s Saab
• Type 219 and 209 NG models from Germany’s TKMS
• Scorpène class from France
• A non-nuclear version of the French Barracuda submarine

No final decision has been made yet, but talks are expected to move ahead in the coming months as Greece works to keep its navy strong in the region.