Throughout its nearly 251-year-long history, the United States Navy has occasionally operated “captured” or otherwise acquired foreign warships, yet it has never actively purchased such vessels for general use. However, due to delays at American shipyards, last month, President Donald Trump signed a memorandum titled “Rebuilding the United States Navy and America’s Shipbuilding Industrial Base,” which would temporarily permit foreign shipbuilders that make substantial investment in U.S. shipyards to build a maximum of two initial vessels in their home countries.
To qualify, foreign companies must make major investments to buy, build, or modernize U.S. shipyards and to train American workers. Any ships built after the first two must still be constructed in the United States.
Reports this week say the White House and the United States Navy could take it even further and are considering employing frigate designs from South Korea, Japan, and Turkey.
“An international warship competition could include building up to two of the ships in foreign shipyards before transitioning to domestic yards as part of the Trump administration’s push to expand the fleet rapidly, three industry sources familiar with the deliberations confirmed,” USNI News first reported.
Foreign Designs Being Considered
The sources told USNI News that the U.S. Navy is currently reviewing an export version of Japan’s FFM Mogami-class guided-missile frigate, which was designed and built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and the Chungnam-class guided-missile frigate built by a variety of South Korean shipbuilders.
In addition, the Turkish Istanbul-class guided-missile frigate is reportedly being considered, after the issue was floated during July’s NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey.
“The President has directed the Navy to aggressively increase domestic shipbuilding capacity, including leveraging the proven shipbuilding skills and industrial expertise of our allies,” Capt. Ron Flanders told USNI News on Tuesday. “We are actively developing options to fulfill the President’s intent to deliver ships faster while ensuring long-term investment, technology transfer, and workforce expansion within United States shipyards.”
The decision to consider a Japanese, South Korean, or Turkish frigate design comes 10 months after the United States scuttled its Constellation-class frigate program, citing repeated cost overruns and delays.
However, the service will accept delivery of the two vessels that are currently under construction at Fincantieri Marine Group’s (FMG’s) Wisconsin shipyards.
Failed Foreign Design
Displacing approximately 7,200 tons, the Constellation-class frigate was developed to replace the aging Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate, with the final ship of the class – the USS Simpson (FFG-56) – retired in September 2015. Between the retirement of the older frigates and the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) program’s failure to meet its planned goals, the U.S. Navy has faced a gap that the new frigates were meant to fill.
Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri was awarded the contract for the Constellation-class frigates during the first Trump administration in 2020, whereby the warships would be built at its Marinette Marine subsidiary in Wisconsin. The vessels were based on the Franco-Italian-designed Frégate Européenne Multi-Mission/Fregata Europea Multi-Missione (FREMM). Those multi-purpose frigates are in service with the navies of France and Italy, designated as the Aquitaine class and Bergamini class, respectively.
The United States Navy selected the FREMM as the basis for the Constellation-class frigates, viewing it as a quick, low-risk adaptation. Instead, the program office overseeing the design opted to alter about 85% of the vessel, which included a significant lengthening of the ship and major changes to its internal arrangements.
Construction began on the first two frigates before the design was finalized. After it was reported that the frigates were running up to 36 months behind schedule, the program was canceled.
In May, HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding division was awarded a $283 million contract to support the FF(X) class frigate lead yard support activities. This initial contract will allow the Pascagoula, Miss., shipyard to procure long lead-time material, execute design work, and begin pre-construction activities for the first ship of the class.
Navigating U.S. Law
The foreign construction of U.S. Navy warships would be a major change of course for the U.S. Navy, as U.S. law generally requires that warships for the U.S. Armed Forces are built domestically. Under 10 U.S. Code § 8679, no vessel for the U.S. armed forces – and no major hull or superstructure component – may be built in a foreign shipyard. The rule was put in place to protect the domestic shipbuilding industry and to maintain military manufacturing jobs and security inside the country.
Still, the law allows the president to waive the ban if it serves the national security interest of the United States, and that is the direction the Trump administration could take.
During the Biden Administration, then-Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro toured shipyards in Japan and South Korea to determine how those facilities could service and maintain existing U.S. Navy warships but also to build the service’s auxiliary and support vessels.
The Finnish Line – Finland Building Coast Guard Cutters
As USNI News further reported, if the U.S. Navy does opt to acquire a foreign-built frigate, it would take a “Finland model,” a reference to the Scandinavian nation and NATO member, building the first two Arctic Security Cutters for the United States Coast Guard as a way to quickly expand America’s icebreaking fleet.
The remaining cutters in the broader program will be constructed at U.S. shipyards, notably Bollinger Shipyards in Houma, Louisiana, using Finnish design and expertise.
The U.S. Navy could chart a similar course with its frigates, filling a much-needed gap and likely avoiding further delays at America’s overworked shipyards.
