Paris: Greece will buy three fregat from France as part of a deeper “strategic partnership” between the two countries to maintain their shared interest in the Mediterranean, French President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday.
The agreement marked “the dared first step towards European strategic autonomy”, Macron told the signing ceremony with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsakakis at the Ellysee Palace.
He called the decision of Athens to buy Belharra ships “sign trust” in the French defense industry, against competition, especially from the American Lockheed Martin group, according to a press report.
The agreement also sent a signal from Paris after losing a multibillion-euro contract for submarines with Australia, which announced that it would sign an agreement for the subscribed substrate from the US.
Macron has long insisted that Europe need to develop its own defense capabilities and no longer depend on the United States.
“Today is a historic day for Greece and France.
We have decided to increase our bilateral defensive cooperation,” Mitsotakis said.
He said the agreement involves “reciprocal support” and “shared actions at all levels,” even though there are no financial details from the contract given.
Mitsakotakis added that the French agreement would not affect the defense cooperation agreement discussed between Greece and the US, even though tensions were triggered between the EU and Washington after the range of Australian submarines.
This agreement is “not an antagonist” with Greece-US relations, he said, for the reason “France stands in us during difficult times in the summer of 2020”, a reference to the Turkish challenge of Greek territorial rights in the Aegean Sea.
Macron also vowed that the US-Australian pact would not affect French strategy for the Indo-Pacific region, where China did not keep her wishes to use significant military shirts.
“We have one million fellow citizens living in this region, and more than 8,000 soldiers are used there,” Macron said, referring to the presence of France through several foreign regions in the region.
He added, however, “Europeans must stop naively” regarding the geopolitical competition, while ensuring that the French Ambassador to Washington, called the house after the crisis of Subs, will return on Wednesday.