Greece to postpone some arms purchases beyond 2028 owing to budget constraints: Report

ATHENS

Greece will postpone some arms purchases beyond 2028 owing to constraints in the defense budget, media reports said Wednesday.

The purchase of missiles of precision strike for the F-16 fleet, the upgrade of the Block 50 F-16s to Viper Block 70 configuration, procurement of C-130 military transport planes and modernization of M270 multiple rocket launcher systems (MLRS) will be postponed after months of consultations between the Defense Ministry and General Staff of the Armed Forces, according to the online version of the Kathimerini newspaper.

Major big-ticket arms deals including the purchase of 24 Rafale jets and three FDI frigates from France exhausted the scope for new procurement for the next four years, it said, citing “competent sources.”

The defense bureaucracy is trying to boost the land forces’ operational capabilities as much as possible with the purchase of second-hand M2 Bradley armored combat vehicles and new Blackhawk transport helicopters from the US, according to the daily.