In the end, Ferdinand still did not approve the Navy Ministry's shipbuilding plan. But he did not reject it outright either. At the very least, he approved the construction of one upgraded coastal-defense battleship, two cruisers, and destroyers.
This was also dictated by Bulgaria's geographical position. After occupying Crete, Bulgaria had already established an island-chain defensive perimeter.
In theory, any nation's fleet wishing to attack the Bulgarian mainland from the Aegean Sea would have no choice but to land on and seize the islands one by one.
Just as when Bulgaria had previously attacked the Ottomans—if the Ottomans had not withdrawn of their own accord, it would inevitably have become a protracted war!
And Ferdinand knew that with the development of aircraft technology, warships would soon be threatened even in coastal waters, and this situation would cease to exist!
Without air superiority, trying to attack through the Aegean Sea and threaten the Bulgarian mainland was nothing but a fool's dream!
Crete was no tiny island. Bulgaria could easily deploy several hundred aircraft there, with an endless stream of reinforcements from the mainland. So long as the enemy was not stupid, they would not attack from that direction!
Even submarines—aside from the Ottoman Empire, probably no other country would dare enter. The Aegean Sea was strewn with islands and reefs; anyone unfamiliar with the waters might destroy themselves before even arriving. Who would sail in there to court death?
Therefore, Bulgaria's future maritime threats would mainly come from the Adriatic Sea, the Otranto Strait, and the Mediterranean Sea. That was the main reason for building coastal-defense battleships.
There was even less need to explain the purpose of building destroyers and cruisers. Aside from escorting battleships, they were meant to deal with German submarines!
The Bulgarian Navy was not qualified to take