Greece and Israel sign 3 billion euro air defense system deal
Greece and Israel on August 31 signed one of the largest defense agreements in the history of bilateral relations. Israel will build for Greece an integrated multi-layered air and missile defense system "Shield of Achilles" worth about €3 billion.
The signing of the contract was officially announced by Israel's Ministry of Defense. On the Israeli side, the document was signed by the ministry's director general Amir Baram, and on the Greek side by the head of defense procurement Ioannis Bouras.
Greek media previously estimated the total cost of the program at about €3.1 billion. According to Kathimerini, negotiations on the project lasted about three years.
What will be included in the "Shield of Achilles"
The new system is intended to integrate into a single network means of combating aircraft, drones, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles.
The program will include the David's Sling system manufactured by Rafael, designed, among other things, for intercepting ballistic and other long-range missiles. Rafael will also supply mobile SPYDER systems for engaging aerial targets at shorter ranges.
Another component will be the BARAK MX system manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), which is to provide the medium layer of air and missile defense.
IAI, through its ELTA division, will also supply multifunctional MMR radars for airspace surveillance. Rafael will establish a new national command and control system that will integrate the various air defense components into a single architecture.
Israel's Ministry of Defense stated that this is the first time the country exports to a partner not a standalone weapon system but a fully integrated protection complex against a wide range of aerial threats.
The system will be deployed gradually
The "Shield of Achilles" is to become the core of Greece's new air defense system. It will integrate the new Israeli complexes with existing Greek assets, including Patriot systems and other air defense elements.
Greek Minister of Defense Nikos Dendias previously reported that the system should become fully operational within 35 months. At the same time, its individual components will be delivered and brought into operation gradually.
One of the tasks of the new architecture will be the creation of overlapping protection zones over the country's territory. The system must provide air, missile, and drone defense for military facilities and critical infrastructure.
Greek companies will receive about a quarter of the work
An important condition for Athens was the participation of the national defense industry. According to Kathimerini, about 25% of the work on the program is to be carried out by Greek companies.
Twelve Greek enterprises are expected to receive orders worth more than €700 million as subcontractors to Israeli defense concerns.
During the negotiations, the parties also settled the issue of Greece's access to the system's software. This is to allow the Greek armed forces to control the operation of electronic components and not be completely dependent on Israeli suppliers regarding the operation of the network.
The Shield of Achilles project is part of a large-scale modernization program of the Greek armed forces. In July, the Greek government approved 11 major defense procurement programs with a total value of about €4.2 billion, and the new air defense system is the largest of them.
Israel's Ministry of Defense calls the deal the largest defense export contract in the history of Israel-Greece relations and one of the largest such contracts for the Israeli defense industry overall.
Based on materials from: Israel Ministry of Defense, Kathimerini, Hellenic Ministry of National Defense
