The United States may hand over two Island-type patrol boats to Ukraine, First Deputy Commander of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Navy Andriy Tarasov said.
“We have reached the finish line of talks on this issue,” he said on air of Odesa TV Channel 7.
The patrol boats are in good order and quite combat capable, Tarasov said.
Furthermore, four Gyurza-M gunboats are due to be delivered to the Navy in the summer of this year, the deputy commander said. The Navy also expects the construction of two assault landing crafts and an auxiliary vessel to be completed.
The Leninska Kuznia shipyard is building all of these vessels in Kyiv.
The Island-type patrol boats were built for the U.S. Coast Guard. They have a water displacement of 168 tonnes, length of 34 meters, width – 6.4 meters. This patrol boat can achieve speed of up to 29.5 knots. The crew comprises 16 people, including two officers, up to U.S. standards. The patrol boat is armed with a 25mm cannon and two machineguns.
Georgia received two such patrol boats in 2016.
