Unconfirmed reports have been circulating for some time about Saudi Arabia’s plans to purchase destroyers. Reportedly, three offers have already been made to Saudi Arabia for the construction and sale of destroyers. These offers would come from the United States, China and Italy.
The Type 052DL destroyer Nanning, of the Chinese Navy, in March this year. (Photo: Mohsen Ranginkaman/Mehr News Agency)
It is not known what offers have been made to Saudi Arabia. China may have offered Type 052D destroyers. At the beginning of this year, the Chinese newspaper South China Morning Post wrote that China wants to export the Type 052D. A Type 052DL is said to have been shown by China to Saudi Arabia during Naval Defense & Maritime Security Exhibition (NAVDEX 2023) in Abu Dhabi. The Chinese destroyer Nanning was present in Abu Dhabi during the exhibition.
This Type 052DL is an extended version of the standard Type 052D design with the ship extended by five meters to 161 meters for a larger helideck. However, the Type 052DL is not available for export. The export version of the Type 052D was recently announced and is referred to as the Type 052DE version, for which the E stands for export. In addition to Saudi Arabia, Algeria may also be interested in the Type 052DE.
A Type 052D destroyer is 156 meters long and has a displacement of 7,500 tons. The destroyer has no less than 64 vertical launch cells that are capable of firing anti-ship missiles, cruise missiles against land targets and rocket-launched torpedoes. In addition, a Type 052D also has Hongqi-10 anti-aircraft systems that can fire a total of 98 anti-aircraft missiles. The ships have AESA radar and L-band radar for long range, thanks to the towed Variable Depth Sonar (VDS) the ships can also search for submarines under temperature layers.
Saudi fleet is obsolete
The current Saudi navy is very diverse when it comes to capital ships (frigates and corvettes). These were built in France and Spain, among others. The four Al Madinah-class frigates date from the 1980s and are very outdated, each carrying eight Italian Otomat anti-ship missiles and eight Crotale anti-aircraft missiles. The more modern Al Riyadh class frigates date from the 2000s and are equipped with Exocet anti-ship missiles and Aster 15 air defense missiles. None of these frigates has sufficient combat capability against land targets.
The four Corvettes of the Badr class come from the United States and also date from the 1980s. The five Al Jubail class corvettes, a variant of the Avante 2000 class, are still under construction by the Spanish Navantia, except for the first corvette. All ships in this class will be delivered by 2024.
Illustration of the Multi-Mission Surface Combatant (MMCS). (Image: Lockheed Martin)
American ships
With half of its fleet dating from the 1980s, Saudi Arabia is approaching the point of having to purchase new warships. For the Badr-class corvettes, it is clear that the five Al Jubail-class ships will be the replacements. However, for the frigates it was unclear for a long time which ships were going to be purchased.
Saudi Arabia has long been interested in purchasing warships to further expand its combat capability. In 2011, the country wanted to buy four Littoral Combat Ships (LCS), with AEGIS, from the US Navy. It was also interested in two new Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, with capabilities for defense against ballistic missiles.
In 2015, the US Congress authorized the sale of four Lockheed Martin multi-mission warships to Saudi Arabia. These MMSCs (Multi-Mission Surface Combatant) are an upgraded version of the Freedom class LCS. The four ships are intended for Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Fleet, stationed in the Persian Gulf.
The purchase, confirmed in 2019, was for $1.95 billion. The MMSC ships are built at Fincantieri Marinette Marine shipyard in the US state of Wisconsin.
The MMSC was developed around the COMBATSS-21 Combat Management System, a variant of AEGIS. This allows the MMSC to be linked to Western platforms to increase interoperability. The MMSC features a 57mm main gun, eight MK-41 vertical launch cells for MBDA’s new CAMM anti-aircraft missiles, space for eight Harpoon anti-ship missiles, two launchers for Mk-32 lightweight torpedoes and two remotely controlled 20mm Nexter Narwhal machine guns for self-defense .
The propulsion of the MMSC is the same as that of the Freedom class, but the range has been adjusted to 5,000 nautical miles. Helideck and hangar were modified to accommodate an MH-60R Seahawk helicopter. Alternatively, the hangar can also house two drones.
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The possible purchase of destroyers appears at first sight to be a significant change in Saudi Arabia’s defense policy. However, an interest in destroyers falls into two ongoing dynamics that will continue to influence Saudi defense policy even further in the coming years.
The first dynamic is Iran’s increasing influence in the Middle East. For example, Iranian-backed militias operate in Iraq and Yemen. Iran provides logistical support by smuggling weapons and naval mines to Yemen and transfers knowledge of ballistic missile construction and development to the Houthi rebels. The ballistic missiles that the Houthi rebels build are regularly used against Saudi targets, as Saudi Arabia supports the Yemeni military.
In recent years, the Iranian navy has also become more active, including converting merchant ships into naval vessels capable of operating around the world and equipped with drones. In addition, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards are increasingly active within the Persian Gulf. This is evidenced by the recent detentions of two oil tankers by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz. This could destabilize maritime trade in the region.
An additional threat posed by Iran is that the country is trying to develop the ability to develop nuclear weapons. Iran already has a large arsenal of ballistic missiles. Iran therefore has the ability to pose a nuclear ballistic threat against Saudi Arabia in the short term.
For Saudi Arabia, there is a need to have a strong defense against the Iranian threat. A powerful Saudi navy may first be able to secure the Strait of Hormuz and curb arms smuggling from Iran to Yemen. In addition, a Saudi navy can help defend against ballistic missiles or carry out an attack against Iranian installations associated with the nuclear weapons program. In the context of this scenario, it is not surprising that Saudi Arabia initially searched for US ships equipped with the AEGIS combat system a decade ago.
The second main dynamic for interest in the Chinese destroyers is part political and part reality. Saudi Arabia had already indicated in the past that it wishes to diversify its arms purchases. With a share of 75% of the Saudi arsenal, the United States is by far the most important arms supplier to Saudi Arabia. This also means that Saudi Arabia is heavily dependent on the US for training and spare parts to maintain the acquired capabilities. In recent years, Saudi Arabia has already diversified part of its arms purchases, including the purchase of unmanned aerial vehicles from China. By purchasing weapons from China, Saudi Arabia is trying to adopt a more neutral position.
On the other hand, there is also the realistic factor. If Saudi Arabia is indeed looking for ships with more striking power, then a destroyer is the obvious choice. Any desire to attack Iranian land targets if necessary and to defend Saudi Arabia against ballistic missiles limits Saudi Arabia’s options.
Destroyers are therefore no stranger to Saudi Arabia, in 2011 the country expressed interest in purchasing two British Type 45 destroyers and later in two Arleigh Burke-class destroyers. That sale fell through, but since then the threat has only increased.
The ships that fit the aforementioned wishes are destroyers of the Arleigh Burke class. These destroyers are equipped with capabilities to attack land targets and mount ballistic missile defenses. However, the rise of the Chinese navy, the slow construction of US destroyers, and the political slog that requires the approval of the US Congress make Saudi Arabia’s chances of purchasing US destroyers slim. In addition, new versions of the US destroyers cost $ 1.6 billion each.
Not only is China able to build the Type 052D faster, the weapons capacity provided on these ships appears to be sufficient for the Saudi Navy. Although it is doubtful that the Type 052D can perform ballistic defense, the ship has sufficient combat capability against land targets, conventional air targets and is suitable for long-range operations. Although the arrival of two destroyers remains a big step for the relatively small Saudi navy.
China has the second best option, presumably at a better price and faster delivery. This dynamic, coupled with the need to reduce the dominance of the Saudi arms arsenal by the United States, could mean that Saudi Arabians might decide to purchase from China after all.
| | Author: Frederik Van Lokeren Frederik has been writing as a freelancer for Marineschips.nl since 2022. As a logistics officer in the Belgian Navy (2010-2017), he was unit commander of minehunter BNS Lobelia during the maintenance period and Head of the Logistics Service of the M-frigate BNS Louise-Marie. Frederik is now a manager in Supply Chain Business Consultancy at Moore Belgium. Furthermore, Frederik closely follows maritime and amphibious developments, with a specific interest in the Russian Navy and Marine Infantry. |
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