Why India wants German submarines

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Stepping aboard: India’s and Germany’s defense ministers enter a submarine at TKMS in KielImage: Chris Emil Janßen/IMAGOAdvertisement

India is moving to strengthen its navy with a new generation of submarines designed in Germany and to be built in India. The deal, worth around $8 billion (€7 billion), is expected to be signed this summer, according to the German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius.

The deal comes as the Indo‑Pacific turns into an increasingly contested arena, with submarines playing a central role. China's growing naval reach and Pakistan's deepening military ties with Beijing are sharpening India's sense of urgency.<br>China's plan to dominate the seas<br>To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video

The submarines in question are German-designed Type 214 boats, built by Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems, or TKMS. They are diesel-electric submarines, not nuclear-powered ones. But they include key technology that makes them especially valuable: air-independent propulsion (AIP).

That technology allows them to stay underwater much longer than other conventional submarines — making them harder to detect and better suited for patrols in crowded waters.

India's sea lanes are vital

India has more than 11,000 kilometers (about 6,840 miles) of coastline, and more than 90% of its trade by volume moves by sea. But the Indian Ocean also contains several chokepoints — narrow passages where sea traffic can be disrupted. Any threat to these routes can quickly become a threat to India's economy.

"This is why it's so important for India to maintain freedom of navigation in the Indo-Pacific region", said Shairee Malhotra, Deputy Director of the Strategic Studies Program at the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) in New Delhi. "Which is why India wants to enhance its naval power. And these submarines would mark a major advancement in India's undersea warfare capabilities."<br>India’s Defense Minister Rajnath Singh (second from right) and Germany’s Boris Pistorius (second from left) visit the Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) shipyard in Kiel, Germany, in April 2026Image: Petra Nowack/penofoto/IMAGO

Submarines are useful in this environment because they can patrol quietly, monitor enemy ships, and create uncertainty for stronger surface fleets. In a crisis, they can act as a deterrent.

"Submarines are evolving into one of the most crucial capabilities in terms of maritime power in the Indo-Pacific," said Sidharth Kaushal, Senior Research Fellow for sea power at the Royal United Services Institute in London. One reason, he said, is that "the surface there is increasingly becoming a very heavily contested and even denied space."

Why AIP matters

Traditional diesel-electric submarines must regularly surface to take in air for their engines. That makes them more visible and more vulnerable. AIP changes this. "What AIP allows a submarine to do is remain submerged for longer periods without a requirement to snorkel like traditional conventional submarines," Kaushal said.<br>Type 214 submarines can stay under water for weeks thanks to AIP, or air-independent propulsionImage: DW Grafik

The German Type 214 uses fuel cells to generate electricity by combining hydrogen and oxygen. This produces power quietly and without exhaust, allowing the submarine to stay underwater for weeks. "It gives it some of the characteristics of a nuclear submarine, while at the same time retaining the advantages of a conventionally powered system," Kaushal said.

Such submarines are smaller and cheaper than nuclear-powered ones. They are also very quiet — a major advantage in shallow or crowded waters.  They can create a sudden threat to much larger naval forces.

Stealth beating size, power and big budgets: HMS Gotland and USS Ronald Reagan at a war gameImage: US Navy

In a US‑led naval exercise in 2005, a small Swedish AIP submarine slipped through heavy defenses and scored simulated hits on a US aircraft carrier — twice. That seems to be exactly the kind of capability India wants as it modernizes its fleet.

"For the moment, India has quite a small submarine fleet, most of which comes from Soviet times. So these are quite old," Malhotra said. "What India is really looking for is to modernize these naval capabilities."

China and Pakistan drive India's concerns

India's naval buildup is closely linked to its two nuclear-armed rivals: China and Pakistan. China now has the world's largest navy by number of ships, with around 400 vessels. Its main focus remains Taiwan and the South China Sea, but Beijing has also expanded its presence elsewhere.  "We've seen China's increasing naval presence in the Indian Ocean, which is an...