German parliament approves sale of 6 heavy frigates to Egypt

The German Parliament Budget Committee has approved export credit guarantees to secure the sale of six heavy frigates to Egypt, the local Bild newspaper reported.

According to the paper, the Egyptian Navy had ordered the warships; including three Meko A200 frigates worth €2.3 billion ($2 billion) from ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS).

The ships can be supplied with weapons including guided missiles and torpedoes.

The frigates are nearly 120 metres long and weigh 3,400 tonnes each.

The Egyptian armament deal provoked a debate inside parliament amid objection from the Green Party.

Green Party Budget expert, Tobias Lindner, criticised the deal and highlighted Egypt’s human rights record.

“The government’s arms export policy is becoming increasingly contradictory,” Lindner told Bild, adding that “people have been fighting for weeks against weapons deliveries to Saudi Arabia, while at the same time wanting to deliver frigates to the military dictatorship in Egypt.”

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