Israel has received its largest-ever submarine, with ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) completing delivery of the IMS Drakon to the Israel Navy, Globes reported.

This appears to have come as part of a broader push by Israel to bolster its military capabilities and replenish its weapons stockpile. Defence company Rafael is in talks to acquire a Volkswagen plant in Germany from where it intends to manufacture Iron Dome components. Meanwhile, the company is planning to establish a production line for Iron Dome Tamir interceptor missiles in India.

The largest submarine built in Germany since the Second World War and the most expensive ever received by Israel, at an estimated cost of €550mn ($634mn), Marine Forum reported. The delivery had originally been scheduled for 2025.

The Drakon is the sixth submarine Israel has procured from TKMS for its 7th fleet. Exceeding 70 metres in length and weighing over 2,000 tons, it is the largest and most powerful submarine in the Middle East. Unlike Israel's first three submarines, the Drakon is equipped with an air-independent propulsion (AIP) system, allowing batteries to be charged underwater and extending dive duration. 

Three additional Dakar-class submarines are expected to arrive from 2031 at 18-month intervals, replacing Dolphin, Leviathan and Tekuma vessels that entered service in 1999–2000. Israel signed the contract with TKMS in 2022 at an estimated €3bn, with the German government expected to finance approximately 20% of the total cost.

Israel remains entirely dependent on TKMS for submarine procurement, a reliance expected to persist through the next decade. Above the waterline, however, a degree of domestic capacity is emerging: in December 2024, the Ministry of Defence signed its first agreement with Israel Shipyards in over two decades, an $840mn deal for five advanced Reshef-type assault ships.

The submarine relationship forms a central pillar of German-Israeli defence ties. Germany ranked as Israel's second-largest defence export customer between 2021 and 2025, accounting for 21% of Israeli defence exports, according to SIPRI data, behind India at 29% and ahead of the United States at 7.8%.