Increased Israel-Greek defense ties opening options for Israeli firms

The upgraded M113 Rafael brought to Greece. The vehicle has been outfitted with a 30mm remote control weapon station and SPIKE missiles. (Rafael Advanced Defense Systems)

JERUSALEM — As ties between Israel and Greece have improved over the last decade, defense firms here have begun to eye Athens as a potentially growing market.

That interest was on full display last week, when Greece held its DEFEA defense exhibition in Athens. Israel’s Ministry of Defense, through its International Defense Cooperation Directorate (SIBAT), brought twenty-five defense companies to the show.

“The impressive Israeli participation highlights the country’s position as one of the global leaders in defense technology and underscores the partnership between Israel and Greece,” Israel’s Defense Ministry said in a statement.

There is a strategic reason Israel and Greece have begun tying together — and, according to Gallia Lindenstrauss, a senior research fellow with the Institute for National Security Studies, that reason is spelled “Turkey.”

“Greece is both a buyer of Israeli defense products and a security partner of Israel,” she said. “The Turkish threat seems to solidify the shared interests between Israel and Greece in the security realm for many years forward.”

“Israel and Greece have had especially close ties for the past decade,” said Lahav Harkov, a senior research fellow at the Misgav Institute for National Security and Zionist strategy, but ties have only improved as Israel’s relations with Turkey have been on the rocks.

Still, said Harkov, “This is more than ‘the enemy of my enemy is my friend.’ The countries [Greece and Israel] have done military exercises together and share intelligence.”

Dan Mariaschin, CEO of B’nai B’rith International, noted that Israel ties with Greece, as well as Cyprus, have withstood the challenges of the recent conflict in Gaza. (In 2021 Greece, Cyprus and Israel signed a program of tripartite military cooperation, and there are also plans for a possible natural gas pipeline that would link Israel via Cyprus and Greece to Europe).

“Save for some votes at the United Nations related to the war in Gaza, whether it be in the field of energy, civil aviation, military-to-military ties, ministerial visits, or in the tourism sector, relations amongst Israel, Greece, and Cyprus have remained relatively positive,” he said.

Israeli’s defense firms had already been eyeing Greece against that strategic backdrop, but Athens’ recent announcement of plans to spend $27 billion on defense in the next decade, with an emphasis on advanced air defenses, represents a real “opportunity” for those companies, Harkov said.

Reports that Greece is interested in developing a multi-billion dollar integrated air defense system inspired by Israel’s success in the field, have also obviously intrigued Israeli firms with experience in that area.

What To Know From DEFEA

Evidence of the growing ties was on display at DEFEA, as the biggest Israeli players all showed up to show off.

Israel Aerospace Industries said on May 7 that it had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Hellenic Aerospace Industry (HAI) to offer IAI’s BlueWhale autonomous submarine system to the Hellenic Navy. IAI said in a statement that it sees this as a “significant milestone in the mutual defense and business cooperation between the two nations.”

As part of the deal “HAI will take on a pivotal role in the production and technological evolution of the BlueWhale autonomous submarine system based on HAI’s extensive experience designing, developing and producing complex technological systems,” the IAI statement noted. IAI CEO and President Boaz Levy praised the deal as a “strategic agreement, further enhancing the defense capabilities of Greece.”

HAI’s CEO Rear Admiral (ret.) Alexandros Diakopoulos noted that “the deployment of the BlueWhale will offer Hellenic Armed Forces with the advantages of a robust solution that combines anti-submarine warfare, mine countermeasures and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities.”

Rafael Advanced Defense Systems brought an M113 armored personnel carrier to Athens for the exhibition. While a Vietnam-era vehicle may seem out of place in a defense exhibition where companies show off advanced drones and artificial intelligence, Rafael is offering the Greeks upgraded platforms with a 30mm remote control gun turret and SPIKE missiles to them.

Elbit Systems, meanwhile, showcased its SkyStriker loitering munition as well as its smaller Skylark 3 drone. It also highlighted its new Hermes 650 Spark drone, a medium altitude, long endurance drone.