The U.S. Navy’s reported interest in foreign frigate designs has opened a new front in Japan-South Korea defense industrial competition. USNI News reported on September 1 that the White House and Navy are considering three allied designs: Japan’s upgraded Mogami class, known as the New FFM or 06FFM; South Korea’s Chungnam class; and Turkiye’s Istanbul class. Up to two ships could be built overseas before production shifts to U.S. yards.
The idea did not come from nowhere. As Naval News reported in June, the Pentagon’s fiscal year 2027 budget proposal included $1.85 billion for an effort involving foreign warship designs, with Japan and South Korea at the center of the discussion.
Japan’s top naval officer has now publicly welcomed the reported U.S. interest. Asked by The Diplomat at a September 8 press conference about the New FFM’s reported inclusion in the U.S. review, Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) Chief of Staff Adm. Saito Akira stressed that he was not in a position to comment on individual U.S. Navy shipbuilding plans. But if the United States or other countries were considering adopting platforms used by the MSDF, he said, “We see this as reflecting a high level of trust in and appreciation for equipment that embodies the advanced technologies of our ships.”
