Paris: The Netherlands plans to buy two support vessels that will act as sidekicks to its air-defence frigates, packing additional missiles to defeat swarms of anti-ship missiles and drones, for an investment in the range of €250 million to €1 billion (US$279 million to $1.1 billion).
The support vessels will also be able to provide fire support for amphibious operations using long-range loitering munitions, as well as equip underwater drones to track and identify suspicious activity in the North Sea, Dutch State Secretary for Defence Gijs Tuinman said in a letter to parliament.
The Royal Netherlands Navy needs to strengthen its air defences and firepower for operations in the “higher violence spectrum,” as well as capabilities to protect critical North Sea infrastructure such as drilling platforms and data cables, according to the Ministry of Defence.
“These vessels are needed to better protect the Netherlands and allies in the event of a threat,” Tuinman said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, describing the two future support vessels as “sailing toolboxes” for the lead vessel. “The ships are capable of carrying a lot of equipment, such as additional firepower and long-range anti-aircraft missiles.”
Dutch shipyard Damen will build the vessels, with Israel Aerospace Industries supplying its Barak ER surface-to-air interceptor, Harop long-range loitering munition as well as electronic-warfare equipment. Buying the missiles, long-range munitions and EW equipment from a single supplier will simplify integration work, the defence ministry said.
The vessels will have a length of about 53 metres and a beam of 9.8 metres, for a displacement of 550 tons, a MoD spokesman said. That compares to a length of around 144 metres and displacement of more than 6,000 tons for the De Zeven Provinciën-class air-defence and command frigates operated by the Dutch Navy.
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