Greece Takes Delivery Of Rafale Jets From France

Tan�gra, Greece, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 20th Jan, 2022 ) :Greece on Wednesday received six Rafale jets from France in a multi-billion-euro arms deal which Athens and Paris claim boosts the EU's defence capabilities, but is mainly seen as countering Turkish ambitions in the Mediterranean.

The six warplanes landed at Tanagra air base, some 70 kilometres (43 miles) north of Athens, after flying over the Acropolis, escorted by Greek Mirage jets previously purchased from France.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who attended the ceremony, said the new additions "make our air force one of the strongest in Europe and the Mediterranean" and bolsters the "flexibility" of Greek diplomacy.

He said there was an "urgent need" to upgrade the Greek air force, which regularly engages in mock dogfights with Turkish jets in Aegean airspace disputed by Ankara.

In a tweet he thanked "my friend" the French President Emmanuel Macron "for helping me strengthen our strategic partnership".

In his own tweet Macron thanked Mitsotakis "for your confidence in France and its aeronautical flagship".

Greece and France had originally signed a 2.5-billion-euro ($3-billion) deal last January for 18 Rafale jets -- 12 used and six new -- as part of a burgeoning arms programme to counter Turkish ambitions.

A Greek air force source said the aircraft that arrived Wednesday are all second-hand.

A seventh used Rafale was delivered to Greece in July last year.

Mitsotakis has also announced plans to buy an additional six Rafale jets, bringing the total order to 24.