Pakistan plans to buy German-made submarines for the first time, but is still technologically behind its nuclear rival India. Pakistan will purchase three Type 214 German submarines under deal worth more than $1 billion (773.7 million euros). The German shipbuilding company Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft GmbH (HDW) will construct the diesel-electric submarines in a shipyard in Pakistan's southern port city of Karachi.
The first submarine will be delivered to the Pakistan navy in 64 months, with the rest delivered in the following 12 months. Pakistan has traditionally relied on French submarines for its naval defense. This is first time that Karachi has opted for German boats. The non-nuclear Type 214 is a 65-meter-long boat which can dive more than 25 meters, but it lacks the technology to avoid detection. Pakistan's quest for new submarines was prompted by its traditional nuclear-armed rival India reaching a 1.5-billion-euro deal in 2005 with a French company for seven Scorpion submarines.
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