Greece to Build Achilles Shield in €3.5bn Deal with Israel

On Thursday, the Greek Government Council for National Security (KYSEA) approved the purchase of a multi-layered air and missile defense system worth up to €3.5bn ($3.99bn) from Israel. The project, called Achilles Shield, will be based on radars and missiles from Rafael and IAI. Defense Minister Nikos Dendias confirmed that the system will be fully operational within 35 months, with at least 25% of its components manufactured by domestic Greek companies.

As part of the modernization of the armed forces, for which Athens plans to allocate approximately €28bn ($31.94bn) by 2036, KYSEA also approved other military acquisitions, including three Embraer C-390 military transport aircraft, American V-BAT unmanned aerial vehicles and Israeli Heron drones, as well as 10 British VICTA mini-submarines for special operations.

Greece, which spends nearly 3.5% of its GDP on defense, in part due to its long-standing dispute with Turkey, is currently replacing its older Patriot and S-300 systems. At the same time, the country is developing close military cooperation with Israel, from which it purchased rocket artillery last year for €650m ($741m).

(Reuters, Max)