By Thai Newsroom Reporters
DEFENCE MINISTER SUTHIN Khlangsang confirmed today (Mar. 21) a purchase of a 17 billion baht frigate in the next fiscal year will not be too late or adversely affect the navy’s procurement plans.
Suthin said the postponement of the planned purchase of a new frigate to add to the navy’s current fleet of seven frigates until fiscal 2025 will not be too late to meet the armed service’s weapon systems procurement projects in relation to its upgraded defence requirements.
The civilian cabinet member in charge of the armed services was responding to yesterday’s event in which an overwhelming majority of MPs had endorsed the Budget Committee’s resolution to shelve the navy’s 17 billion baht frigate procurement plan until the next fiscal year whilst deliberating the 2024 budget bill in its second reading.
According to Thanet Khruarat, chair of a subcommittee of the Budget Committee in charge of the armed services’ procurement projects, the navy is choosing to buy the yet-unspecified frigate from five shipbuilding countries, namely Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and South Korea.
The navy currently deploys a South Korean-built Bhumibol Adulyadej frigate, two Chinese-built Naresuan-class frigates and four Chinese-built Chao Phraya-class frigates, among other warships.
Meanwhile, it remains to be seen how the defence minister and navy will finally settle the sustained controversy over the procurement of a Chinese-built submarine without a German engine as specified in its purchase contract.
Suthin has earlier said the Chinese submarine question will be decided upon around the end of this month or early next month.
China Shipbuilding & Offshore International Co., the submarine manufacturing firm, had earlier negotiated for the installation of a Chinese-made CHD620 engine aboard the Yuan-class S26T submarine in place of the unavailable German-made MTU396 engine aboard the 12.4 billion baht submarine.
Admirals who had been reportedly divided over the engine specs are yet to decide whether to approve the Chinese engine.
The delivery of Thailand’s first submarine in six decades which had been earlier scheduled for last year has been indefinitely postponed due to the lack of the sought-after engine.
Suthin had earlier commented the S26T submarine purchase deal will unlikely be scrapped despite the failure on the part of the Chinese shipbuilding firm to meet its engine specs for fear of, he said, an otherwise adverse effect in the lasting relationship between the two countries.
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Defence Minister Suthin Khlangsang. Top photo: Thai Rath, Front Page photo: Matichon
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