Last week, the fifth of six Kilo-class submarines that Vietnam
bought from Russia arrived in the Southeast Asian state.
According
to Thanh Nien News, the HQ-186, delivered by Dutch-registered cargo ship
Rolldock Star, arrived at Cam Ranh Bay in Khanh Hoa province last Tuesday
evening. The submarine laid at anchor near Cam Ranh Port and was scheduled to
arrive at the port thereafter.
As I
reported for The Diplomat last year, the HQ-186 underwent a trial run in
the Baltic Sea on June 8 and was expected to arrive in early 2016. The fourth
submarine, codenamed HQ-185 Da Nang, arrived at Cam Ranh Port back in July
(See: “Vietnam Gets Fourth Submarine
From Russia Amid South China Sea Tensions”).
As I
noted then, the submarines are part of a deal Vietnam reached with Russia’s
Admiralty Shipyards for six Project 636 Kilo-class diesel-electric submarines
for $2 billion back in 2009. Under the agreement, signed during Prime Minister
Nguyen Tan Dung’s visit to Moscow that year, Russia agreed to provide the
submarines, train Vietnamese crews, and supply necessary spare parts.
The
latest delivery comes amidst simmering disputes in the South China Sea, where
both Vietnam and China are claimants alongside the Brunei, Malaysia, the
Philippines, and Taiwan. Last year, Vietnamese officials said that the first
Kilo-class submarine had begun patrolling the South China Sea.
The sixth
and final submarine, named HQ-187 Ba Ria-Vung Tau, is expected to arrive in
Vietnam in mid-2016. Russia officially launched HQ 187 in September last year
in a ceremony attended by the commander of the Russian navy Admiral Viktor
Chirkov and his Vietnamese counterpart Rear Admiral Pham Hoai Nam. The two had
also reportedly discussed strengthening security cooperation in the
Asia-Pacific.
As I
reported earlier, the Kilo-class submarines are considered to be one of
the quietest diesel submarines in the world, and are designed for
anti-submarine warfare and anti-surface-ship warfare. Several analysts,
including Carlyle Thayer at The Diplomat, have explored how Vietnam
People’s Navy (VPN) may use them to counter Chinese naval capabilities in the
South China Sea. By Prashanth Parameswaran
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