Greek Government Asks Parliament to Approve Major Arms Deal

The Associated Press (AP) reports that the government of Greece is asking its parliament to approve a 3 billion-euro ($3.4 billion) defence agreement. The agreement in question is a purchasing deal for “three new French-made frigates,” negotiated between French President Emmanuel Macron and his Greek counterpart Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in September of 2021. According to the frigate manufacturer, the French state-owned company Naval Group, the first two frigates will be delivered in 2025 and the third in 2026.

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Indian Private Naval Sector Struggles as Government Turns to State-owned Shipyards

The Indian plan of reaching a fleet of 175 ships in the following five years is destined to fail due to insufficient funds and because of the preference of the government to support state-owned shipyards over private business. With the government favouring state-owned shipyards for building critical naval platforms, projects undergo delays and additional costs, Navy officials state (Vivek, Defense News, 2022). The Indian Navy is currently equipped with 130 ships, and 39 vessels are under construction. However, a $1.5 billion annual budget allocated to shipbuilding programs is not enough to meet the capability deficit. Additionally, only three naval contracts of $71.42 million were assigned to private shipbuilders, with the remaining 47 projects given to state-owned shipyards. In this respect, 40 ships are envisaged to the Navy, whereas 10 for the Indian Coast Guard.

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