Greece, Israel stress common will to further develop bilateral ties, defense cooperation

ATHENS

Greece and Israel on Tuesday underlined their common will to further develop bilateral ties and defense cooperation.

In a joint statement following the visit of Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, Greek Defense Minister Nikos Dendias stressed that the bilateral defense cooperation presently covers a wide spectrum, from military exercises to strategic convergence in research, innovation, defense technology, and industry.

"Today, we also talked about strengthening our cooperation in the study of modern methods used in 21st-century conflicts. We agreed to exchange views, know-how, so that we can deal with unmanned platforms and, in particular, swarms of unmanned aerial vehicles and groups of unmanned underwater vehicles,” he added.

Dendias also said his country is building on Israel’s example to strengthen its defense industry.

“Our aim is for Greece, from a client state and a simple purchaser of defense systems to become a joint producer or a producer of relatively low-cost innovative products,” he said.

Katz, for her part, emphasized that his visit marks "an important milestone in the great and deep alliance between Israel and Greece.”

“Today, as Defense Minister, my commitment is clear: to further deepen the military and regional cooperation between Israel and Greece,” he added.

Israel has emerged as a major arms supplier for Athens, providing various types of advanced missiles, drones, and electronic warfare systems.

The Israeli army also often uses Greek soil for training and exercises.