Report: Germany reconsiders funding Israel's latest submarine
The American weekly Defense News said the collapse of the deal presents the Israel Navy with major difficulties in renovating its aging fleet of ships and submarines.
By Amos HarelThe American weekly Defense News reported on Tuesday that Germany has reconsidered providing funding for a sixth submarine for the Israel Navy, even though it expressed a willingness in the past to help finance the project.
The publication said the Germans had told Israel that, despite expectations, Germany would not fund about one-third of a $1.6 billion transaction that includes Israel's sixth Dolphin-class submarine and two warships made in Germany.
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Dolphin submarine. |
| Photo by: Tomer Appelbaum |
Germany funded more than 80 percent of the cost of Israel's first three Dolphin submarines in the 1990s, and is currently accounting for a third of the cost of two more submarines being manufactured in Germany.
Barbara Opall-Rome, Defense News' Israel correspondent, reported that the Germans have responded negatively to a series of Israeli requests that included a direct appeal by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Opall-Rome reported on meetings in Berlin on July 7 involving an Israeli delegation headed by Defense Ministry Director General Ehud Shani and aides to Merkel and her defense minister. The Germans reportedly told Shani they were suspending contacts over the aid package.
Shani told the American weekly the Germans were facing a difficult economic situation, so it was understood they could not assist Israel with the deal, which will now have to be reevaluated.
Defense News said the collapse of the deal presents the Israel Navy with major difficulties in renovating its aging fleet of ships and submarines. The German retraction has also revived a difference of opinion in Israel between politicians who support the acquisition of a sixth submarine and planners in the Israel Defense Forces who prefer to buy new ships.
A senior officer in the General Staff said Israeli politicians "are trying to force the purchase of the submarine on us." He criticized the navy, which he said "put all its eggs in the German basket" and didn't attach sufficient importance to a comparable deal with the United States that could have been funded from U.S. military assistance to Israel.
The chances of obtaining the ships from Germany had already declined last year after the Gulf emirate of Abu Dhabi acquired the shipyards where they were being made.
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Do not feel guilt...you did not do it...While they would do it now if they could... crusader state of Acre lasted for 130 years...then SalLahuDin Al Naubi with brothers fixed the situation...Whos next :)
I would prefer that Israel produce the majority of it's military weapons systems in Israel. Israeli technology, Israeli workforce, Israeli money. Hopefully with the newly found oil and gas reserves discovered, it will happen. I would love to see Israel pay back the financial aid given to her so that there couldn't be any more negative posts about "sucking us dry," "my hard-earned tax dollars," etc. Go ask Jordan and Egypt how many billions of dollars they've been paid in US taxpayer dollars since their peace treaties with Israel were signed; all without the same restrictions that Israel has. Maybe these countries that currently supply Israel with military hardware won't/can't hold spare parts over Israel's heads. Foreign policy dictated by spare parts when Israel has to defend herself against terrorists buried in rat holes up against schools, hospitals, and mosques firing mortars and missles at Israeli civilians.
The long answer is that nobody in Europe in general and Germany in particular is fooled about the terrorist attack against Israel carried out by the Turkish terror group IHH and sponsored by Erdogan. The Europeans may pay lip service to the Muslims, but it doesn't mean the Europeans are fooled by them.
There were 3 members of the German parliament on the Marmara. I have ssen no indication that their view of Israel's occupation and blockade has improved during and after the raid, nor do they likely share the German governments classification of the IHH as a terrorist organization (next to an unusual all party resolution issued by Germany to lift the Gaza blockade completely)
Could someone explain me why a country like Germany needs to tell reasons for not paying what the others are buying from them? Wouldn't it be more appropriate to ask for the reasons, why they payed for that in the past? Can you imagine someone coming to a shop and buy things and demand that the shop owner pays it himself?
The Dolphins are a highly modified version of a German diesel electric submarine. Israel owns part of the design rights to the Dolphins because they are built to Israeli standards its not an off the shelf version which everybody else buys and the best bit is Germany asks no questions and places very few conditions of sale. American weapons come with all kinds of strings attached. There are already 5 Dolphins and the navy wants a fleet of 6 subs you don't buy 6 of one type and 1 of another. Also the US only builds nuclear submarines these days. so there isn't even an alternative because a nuclear sub other than being contreversial because Israel hasn't signed the NPT and it would be much more expensive than the Dolphins and the US subs are designed for deep water operations the Dolphins are designed mainly for use in littoral waters which is what Israel needs. Also Israel was planning to buy the US littoral combat ship as its next generation ship but the costs were to high ( around $500 million each ) even with military aid that kind of money is to much for Israel. Germany makes some good boats and much more affordable than the littoral combat ship. Israels navy has been virtually all either domestic or German for decades.
i guess germany gots 4.
and with the economic downturn, near demise of the Euro and cuts in services. Couple that with a decline in Angela Merkal's popularity it would be political suicide for her if she was seen giving billions of Euros to Israel when Germans are seeing their pensions cut. However here is a proposal, why doesn't Israel pay for it themselves?
About time Europe stops giving away weapons for free that are later used against civilians.
Kein Problem ... Pay for them !
Israel always demands, demands, demands - finally Germany can say no. I hope they will stay with that and not give up. 65 years after the war it is time to stop this "Guilt" policy.
You just deliberately and systematically murdered 6 million people, woman and babies. It's no big deal, could happen to anyone, don't worry about it. Let them face their enemies on their own. It's only fair.
I am the majority of the German population didn't live during the war and didn't kill anyone! It is 65 years now!!!! That is the point! And Germany payed a lot and admitted all the guilt but you can't use the guilt to be payed over and over again forever! Also the Germans have the right to look ahead. This guilt (nobody is denying it) used too much!!!
I don't feel guilty at all, nor do I feel like my country should have to pay a cent. This happened before my parents were even born. The "you" in your first sentence makes no sense. Under those circumstances, I think it is only normal that you should pay for suppressing an infinitely weaker people yourself.
that Germany is no longer the victimizer, and Jewish Israelis are no longer the victims. Two wrongs never make a right, and Germany is the very last country on earth that has any moral excuse for supporting a country that is increasingly showing similarities with the openly racist and discriminatory - towards Jews and Arabs - and expansive military dictatorship erected by the Nazis in the 1930s. Nobody has to wait for systematic mass murder in concentration camps to see the connections
note how Ron only considers Jews as people. If he was more inclusive he'd have used a larger figure
The Arabs have no say in this matter what so ever. It is plain and simple: The Germans are sick and tired of Israel and the jewish people. And rightfully so....
Yeah they do. The worse case scenerio is that they have threatened to close down the shipyards if this deal goes through.
Yeah, the USA is much easier to milk!! right?
google netanyahu 2001
just watched that video. shocking! yaweh sure didn't give his chosen people a good sense of interior decorating. yeesh
It's not Germany that has backed off but Israel,they have just cut their defence budget by 25%.Each and every country have alot of economic problems and high unemployment which is not going to improve in the near future. So please keep your sarcastic postings to yourselves,your countries are all involved in this mess.
the palestinians in gaza (together with their iranian allies) use the money for buying weapons instead of building up infrastructure, and therefore israel needs help for weapons, too. germany should stop giving the palestinians money for weapons, and the whole problem were solved!
in opposite to the money givin to israel, the pal-money is very well controlled to prevent this. and it is much less than we give to israel. and israel is buyin weapons with it (which i support it)
EU and Germany for example gave a lot of money for the construction of a palestinian airport. Israel chose to destroy it. Till today Europeans are not amused. There are more examples.
Here we see clear signs of the muslim world conquering through legal means of the wsetern world. Now that Germany is selling its industrial sector to the arab world let see what happens when Germany will need to buy its own ship will they have to ask permission from the shaik?
Why didn't Israel buy it?
The Arabs own the German shipyards......
There's an evil Arab conspiracy that is taking over the world. It's true, I read it on the internet. Oh and did you know they eat children? Like all the time.
But I do know they killed 3000 people on 9/11. I read about it on the Internet.
Ron, I read something else on the internet about who's behind 9/11.... havnt u?
Then tell me why there were Israelis set up to record the event two hours before it happened.
and how many people has israel killed in it's history? a far greater number than 3000 (ok, here come the israeli apologists shouting about other, larger numbers elsewhere)
No German free funding for the submarines.? No problem. Just get the extra money from American taxpayers--like always.
Why is Israel always out begging other nations for financial aide? Is Israel a third world country or something?
No. It is the front fighter to save the whole world from the Muslim assault.
Well it is the guy who picked the fight with the Muslim in the first place, so maybe it should do its own fighting.
see the article in today's Haaretz about the arab convicted of rape for failing to tell jewish woman he was an arab
Is it possible that other, political, considerations also motivate German reluctance? After all, keeping shipyards busy is good domestic policy. Could this be a sign of a creeping German revision of its own alliance with israel?
Germany simply has reached its limit on foreign aid. Not enough money. Not enough political power in the declining incumbent leadership. Israel, has no chance, but must either finance these ships through new negotiations or lose out. Israel has already placed orders with US shipyards for Naval Vessels. Good day.
"Israel has already placed orders with US shipyards for Naval Vessels." and will pay with US taxpayer dollars. what a sad joke
The money would be available if it weren't spent on settler villages, access roads, etc.
So sweet to be Israelis. Oh the jobless olems receive welfare from the country of origine and then by US tax payers again when they arrive in the new "holyland" Vive la holyland
and it's been around since 2002...
when you give them back their land then they may be ready to negotiate peace.
You think the land belongs to someone whose ancestors lived on it? By that (idiotic) logic all the land in Israel, West Bank and Jordan belongs to Jews. The truth is, every decent piece of land on this planet has been occupied and reoccupied multiple times. You don't suggest Americans should return all the land to Indians, do you?
Why is everyone so into buying weapons for Israel? Israel itself is a major weapons producer and has one of the larger, high tech military establishments in the world, and by far the largest in their region. Is there any reason that Israel can't pay for the weapons they want from other nations?
hey, kike, why is it ok to call germans "krauts"?
wow, your superior intelligence does sure put together not a sentence coherent
The Arabs bought the shipyard where the famed U-boats were built, and now the Israelis can't have any more. Don't come begging to American taxpayers. We've already coughed up enough and gotten nothing but two losing wars in the Mideast in return.
you've just gained a lot, too, in America. Imagine, all those US-exports to Israel wouldn't have taken place and all the money couldn't have earned by these exports to Israel. Your US-economy would look much worse! Therefore don't say you've gotten nothing but two losing wars! You've got a lot of money due to the business which is made with Israel!
We gave you the money that you then bought our stuff with - it's the annual 3 billion dollars in aid which you are supposed to spend 70% of in the US. So we didn't "get a lot of money" - we got 70% of our own money back. A net loss of approx. 9 billion over ten years by that percentage.
and even if the USA gets something in return, it's still a BOON (charity?) to Israel, something that Israelis seem incapable of acknowledging