05.12.2025, 23:06
Zitat:Why Romania Preferred the Turkish Solution: MILGEM Akhisar
05 Dec 2025, 12:44 9 mins
France Romania Turkiye European Union
Navy / Maritime Bilateral Relations Regional / Strategy Defence Politics
Why Romania Preferred the Turkish Solution: MILGEM Akhisar
This article discusses how Romania needed naval modernisation but pursued EU-driven policies instead of choosing Türkiye’s proven, cost-effective solution. The Turkish idiom of “Yanlış hesap Bağdat’dan döner” the closest meaning “A wrong calculation eventually reveals itself” proves to be accurate once more.
Romania's 11-Year Delay in Modernising Its Navy After Russia Took Crimea in 2014: A Strategic Overview
Romania transforming from a Warshaw pact country to EU one, has neglected its navy for a long time, but Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014 recalled former concerns.
Romania had not invested on its fleet for decades, believing that the Black Sea's closed structure and the Montreux Convention's control of the Turkish Straits would keep large-scale naval threats to a minimum. But after 2014, Moscow's military stance showed serious weaknesses in Romania's surface fleet, sub-surface capabilities, and overall maritime situational awareness.
Romania's Navy is getting smaller: problems with its fleet after 2014
Romania’s surface combatants reflected decades of underinvestment:
The Type 22 frigates (Regele Ferdinand & Regina Maria) were built in the 1980s and cost more and more to run. They needed a comprehensive upgrade of their sensors, armaments, and combat systems.
The Soviet-era Project 1241 Tarantul-class missile boats didn't work well in today's electronic warfare and naval combat settings.
Tetal-class corvettes, which were built in the 1970s and 1980s, had a lot of problems with maintenance, were not very flexible in their missions, and were very close to being obsolete.
Sub-surface capabilities were even worse. The Kilo-class submarine Delfinul hadn't been used since 1996 since it didn't have any batteries and there wasn't a good strategy for updating it.
Romania came up with a big plan to modernise because of these fundamental problems.
Romania's goals for modernisation from 2016 to 2024
Romania's naval modernisation from 2016 to 2024 was based on five main ideas:
Construction of four new corvettes
Modernisation of two Type 22 frigates
Acquisition of a modern mine-countermeasure capability
Purchase of new submarines (with France’s Scorpène class as the preferred option)
Renewal of the coast guard fleet
The centrepiece of this effort was the “4 New Corvettes + 2 Frigate Modernisation” procurement package. It was this programme that became the focus of political pressure, legal disputes and eventually a strategic setback.
https://turdef.com/article/why-romania-p...em-akhisar