Germany Emerges as K-Defense’s Biggest Rival [Yang Nakgyu's Defence Club]

Competition in Canada’s Submarine Project and Saudi Arabia’s Frigate Program
K-Defense Aims to Avenge Tank Program Defeats in Poland and Norway

Germany is emerging as a major rival to K-Defense exports. As recently as the 1980s and 1990s, South Korea directly imported German submarines. When introducing the 1,200-ton Class 209 Jangbogo-I submarines, Korea’s defense industry did not even have special steel welding technology and therefore requested technology transfer from Germany. It could only look to the technology of Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW) shipyard, which Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) acquired in 2005. Some 30 years later, K-Defense has grown to the point where the two countries are called the twin pillars of the defense market. It has effectively become a fight between teacher and student.

AFP Yonhap News Agency

Germany’s defense industry is recognized worldwide. The know-how accumulated through two world wars was overwhelming. However, it lost momentum due to postwar European integration and the creation of NATO. Defense spending was only around 1.2% of GDP, and the troop level was reduced to 180,000. It was the historical trauma of a former war-criminal state. Today, Germany has changed. It is pursuing the largest rearmament since the war and is once again targeting the global defense market. This year, it has increased defense spending to around 2% of GDP (about 130 trillion won) and plans to raise it to around 3.5% (about 265 trillion won) by 2029. It is simultaneously pushing to strengthen its tank and submarine forces through domestic defense companies and to expand troop numbers. Its efforts to seize the initiative in the global market are also striking.

In the global naval defense market, it is coming into direct conflict with K-Defense. The largest project is the “Canadian Patrol Submarine Project (CPSP).” The final proposal is due soon. Canada wants submarines capable of operating in the Arctic Ocean. Because they must fight underwater in harsh conditions, “submerged endurance” is crucial. Germany is putting forward its proven air-independent propulsion (AIP) technology. In addition, perfect compatibility with NATO-standard armaments is cited as a major strength. In other words, this is a hurdle K-Defense must clear. Germany is proposing the “ORCCA” combat system from Norway’s Kongsberg, which is fully compatible with NATO-standard weapons.

The two are also expected to clash in Saudi Arabia’s frigate acquisition program, the largest defense market in the Middle East. Major European defense companies from France, Spain, and Italy are also expected to join the bidding for the frigate contract, but Korea and Germany are regarded as the leading candidates. Saudi Arabia’s frigate acquisition program is part of the Saudi Naval Expansion Program II (SNEP II), a naval modernization initiative that Saudi Arabia has pursued since the mid-2010s. The project is reported to cover five 6,000-ton frigates. Industry sources estimate the project size at 400 million to 500 million dollars per frigate (about 600 billion to 700 billion won).

Germany’s TKMS is reported to have recently proposed introducing MEKO A-200 frigates to the Saudi side. Although the Saudi authorities have not yet launched an official bidding process, some observers believe that selection of the contractor could be completed as early as this year. The Saudi frigate competition is seen as a test bed for Korea to expand its presence in the Middle East naval power market. The outcome could also affect Saudi Arabia’s future submarine acquisition program as it takes concrete shape.

An industry official said, “The two countries have already diverged once in the tank market,” adding, “In Poland’s 2022 tank program and Norway’s 2023 tank program, we lost to Germany’s Leopard 2 and are now seeking to avenge those defeats.”