is, however, equipped with electro-optical day and night-vision payloads and marine surveillance radars that provide up-to-date, real time and, accurate intelligence information. According to the IsraelDefense website news first published on 20 December 2022, the total value of the Greek purchase of eight (and not 17 as originally Greece requested) Rafael manufactured Spike NLOS missile system simulators was €335 million of which €280 million are intended for the army and €55 million for the navy. Also, 17 Spike missile systems will be installed on the Sandcat vehicles of the Greek infantry units stationed in the Avros region and on islands along the Turkish coast. The Greek Air Force will equip nine Boeing Apache AH-64A helicopters out of a fleet of 19 in the force. The number of missiles Greece purchased from Israel is not known. The Greek Navy is expected to mount Spike NLOS missiles on its four Machitis-class (HSY56A) patrol vessels and four US-built Mk V special operation fast boats. Also unknown, is the number of Sandcat EX11 armoured vehicles from Plasan, that were chosen as the main launching platform for ground units. Along with Spike missiles, the Greek army is purchasing an unspecified number of Orbiter UAVs manufactured by Aeronautics Group intended to be used for acquiring targets and receiving accurate intelligence. The deal also includes combat simulators for training. Israeli sources citing Greek Defence Minister, Nikos Panagiotopoulos, report that “Rafael’s Spike NLOS missiles deal with Greece is due to be signed in February 2023.” In the naval sector, Israel Shipyard, Israel‘s leading military shipyard, is closely watching the dynamics of the competition for frigates, but of course this is not its core business. Instead, the company hopes to have good opportunities in the corvette sector and in the patrol vessel sector for the Coast Guard. The Greek financial crisis that began in late 2009 has severely restricted the government from expenditure in defence, therefore, limiting its ability for procuring needed weapons systems. At the same time, Turkey’s as Greece’s major adversary, saw its domestic procurement of weapons systems accelerated with the first of six HDW Type 2014 submarines - built at Gölcük Naval Shipyard - entering the service of the Turkish Navy in 2023 with the rest to follow in the coming years. However, Greece’s recovery pace accelerated around 2019-2020. This resulted in the government encouraging the privatization of bankrupt and bloated state-owned enterprises, forming partnerships with foreign investors to carry on modernization and the subsequent introduction of global standards of management. The reinvigorated industry joined the European Union’s Permanent Structured Cooperation (EU PESCO) programs. Finally, Finance Minister, Christos Staikouras, announced in June 2022 that “Payments for defence systems acquisitions rose from €515 million in 2020 to about €2.5 billion in 2021 and rose again to €3.4 billion in 2022. Actual deliveries for the years 2022-2028 will total €11.5 billion, or an average of over €1.6 billion annually, from about €500 million in recent years.” The country’s defence budget stands at €6.39 billion in 2022 or 3.7 percent of the GDP, with a decrease to €5.65 billion in 2023. The ambition of the industry is, however, not focused on just reinvigorating itself but also in exporting arms, first to countries neighboring countries and then around the world. This is, however, a long-term vision or plan. Albeit the example of successful arms exports from Turkey is likely to inspire the leaders of Greece, in general, and managers of the Hellenic defence and shipbuilding industry their visions or plans remain uncertain. Cooperation with Israel On the recommendation of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), the Hellenic Civil Aviation Authority (HCAA), has for the first time issued a permit allowing Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) Heron 1 long-range UAV to be flown in Greece’s airspace (read EU airspace) in November 2022. The permit allows the UAV to be used in the operational activities of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (also known as Frontex), for marine surveillance and coastal protection only. In other words, the UAV lacks tools for military intervention or military control. It Eugene Kogan The Hellenic defence industry’s international cooperation programmes 40 · MT 2/2023 Nations in Focus: Greece A GA-ASI MQ-9 Guardian ready to flight along with a Greek F-16. (Photo: GA-ASI)
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