Greece declines transfer of air defense systems to Ukraine – PM Mitsotakis
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Greece will not transfer air defense systems such as Patriot or S-300 to Ukraine.
According to Reuters, he said this in an interview with a local TV channel.
"Greece will not hand over the S-300 or Patriot to Ukraine. We were asked, and we explained why we could not do it," Mitsotakis said, commenting on requests from allies in the EU and NATO to provide Kyiv with additional military aid.
These systems are "crucial to our deterrence capabilities," he said.
The defense issue is very sensitive for Athens, given the tension in relations with Türkiye.
Earlier, Greek Defense Minister Nikos Dendias announced plans to develop an air defense system similar to Israel's "Iron Dome" to protect against aerial threats.
It should be noted that Greece has already transferred to Ukraine:
- thousands of rockets,
- armored infantry vehicles,
- high-explosive bombs,
- ammunition,
- anti-tank missiles.
It was previously reported that Greece may transfer Patriot air defense systems to Ukraine under the condition of monetary compensation from the United States and security guarantees from Washington due to the threat from Türkiye.
So, Athens would hand over one Patriot Pac 3 battery to Ukraine, which can shoot down ballistic targets, in exchange for security guarantees from the US. The journalists did not specify what security guarantees the country received.
In addition, if necessary, Washington could transfer the Patriot to Greece from its own reserves, replacing it with the one that Athens would transfer to Kyiv, or provide monetary compensation from the aid package of more than 60 billion dollars.
Earlier, the Financial Times wrote that some EU and NATO member states are putting pressure on Greece and Spain to provide Ukraine with more air defense systems. Thus, the prime ministers of Spain and Greece, Pedro Sanchez and Kyriakos Mitsotakis, were assured that their countries' needs were not as great as Ukraine's, and therefore, they should provide Kyiv with more air defense systems.
During the summit in Brussels last week, EU leaders personally called on the Prime Ministers of Spain and Greece, Pedro Sanchez and Kyriakos Mitsotakis, to transfer part of their air defense systems to Ukraine.
Leaders from both nations have stated that their military possesses over a dozen Patriot systems and other equipment, such as the S–300, but they do not require it as much as Ukraine.
"We all know who has them, we all know where they are, and we all know who really needs them," one source said.
According to their data, less pressure is exerted on Poland and Romania, which also have Patriot, given their more vulnerable location on the border with Ukraine.
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