Israel steps up submarine acquisition

The Israeli government has elected to speed up delivery of a third submarine purchased from Germany in an effort to bolster its deterrent power and to win a larger regional war, if necessary.

The Tekuma -- the last of three German-built Dolphin-class diesel-electric submarines purchased by Israel -- has been hastily delivered to the Israeli navy for "security reasons," according to a senior military source who spoke Tuesday on Israel Radio.

Israeli navy Dolphin-class submarine undergoing sea trials.

The sub, which has been kept in Germany while the Israeli naval crew underwent training, may also be part of a plan by the Jewish state to complete a land-attack capability the military reportedly has been developing for months.

According to earlier reports in the Jewish and Western press, Israel is engineering its submarines to become capable of launching conventional or nuclear-tipped cruise missiles, which would give the Israel Defense Force a multi-tiered, land-attack capability against an enemy, similar to one developed years ago by the United States and Russia.

Concerned over an escalation in the current cycle of Mideast violence, Israeli military and government officials are making attempts to better prepare the Jewish state for a wider conflict -- which many feel is possible the longer violence in the region continues.

If a wider regional conflict somehow manages to damage Israel's land-based or air-based nuclear strike capability, the navy wants to be able to launch such weapons from the sea, since potential Arab enemies don't have the ability at the moment to detect and destroy an Israeli submarine fleet.

In June, reports surfaced that the Israeli navy was testing a land-attack submarine cruise missile capability off the coast of Sri Lanka. Israeli officials at the time denied the reports, which said sub crews had successfully launched a pair of cruise missiles.

Reports said Israel has developed two cruise missiles -- the Popeye Turbo, with a range of 200 kilometers, and the longer-range Delilah, which reportedly can hit targets up to 400 kilometers. The missiles allegedly tested in June had a reported range of 1,500 miles, the Jerusalem Post said.

The three state-of-the-art, 1,750-ton Dolphin subs reportedly cost about $440 million each, though Berlin heavily subsidized the construction project.

Germany decided to help underwrite the project for Israel because the Jewish state, during the 1991 Gulf War, was struck with Iraqi missiles containing warheads and components manufactured by Germany.

Under a plan developed by then-German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, Berlin paid for a sizeable portion of the first two subs; Israel financed the third, the Tekuma.

The new subs will reportedly replace Israel's three aging German submarines, which entered service in 1977. The vessels can accommodate a crew of 35 for more than one month of continuous operations.

The Dolphin class is designed for interdiction, surveillance and special-forces operations and is designed to travel at maximum speeds of 20 knots with a cruising range of 4,500 nautical miles. The vessel has 10 torpedo tubes and is capable of launching Harpoon missiles, according to Stratfor.com.

The only competition Israel has in the region from other submarine forces comes from Syria and Egypt. Syria's three Soviet-era Romeo subs are not operational; Egypt -- which is diplomatically siding with Israel -- has four Romeos that underwent upgrades in 1996, but are reportedly no match for the Dolphins.

Also, U.S. attack submarines -- the world's most advanced -- patrol the waters of the Persian Gulf and Mediterranean.

Iranian Kilo-class submarine.

Iran also has a submarine capability. According to published reports, Iran has purchased three Kilo-class submarines from Russia. Last week, U.S. press sources reported that a weapons deal struck between Russia and Iran in 1995 -- and allegedly kept secret from Congress by Vice President Al Gore and then-Russian Foreign Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin -- included modern Russian subs and torpedoes for Iranian subs.

"Israel is clearly concerned that the current crisis still has potential to pull in surrounding Arab nations and blow up into a regional war," Stratfor.com analysts said. "Israeli military doctrine has always focused on immediate threats from its Arab neighbors, strong deterrence and a first-strike capability. Israel may be hoping its increased readiness will further deter Arab nations from involving themselves in a larger war."