Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi spoke in depth on Friday about the defence sector during the latter's first official visit to Athens.
The Greek prime minister noted, among other things, in the joint statements after their talks:
"Our history is accompanied, as we discussed, by the same values: democracy, peace, and justice. And based precisely on these powerful foundations of our long-standing relationship, we are very pleased to now upgrade our cooperation to a Strategic Partnership [...]
"Moreover, our governments have adopted a significant Joint Declaration, which transforms our relationship into a strategy, highlighting in this way the need to march as fellow travellers in the face of the stakes of tomorrow on the one hand, acting together on fronts that have with diplomacy and security [...]
"I note with satisfaction that in recent years, our relations have noticeably improved, and our contacts at a high level have thickened. But there is so much more we can do together.
"There is, therefore, the basis for a comprehensive framework of bilateral cooperation - we had the opportunity to discuss it in detail - from economy and defence to culture and tourism, from cooperation in the agricultural sector after the signing of the relevant memorandum yesterday, up to joint defence against the consequences of climate change."
For his part, the Indian Prime Minister was more specific, saying:
"Today, the Prime Minister and I have decided to upgrade our relationship to a Strategic Partnership. We have decided to strengthen our Strategic Partnership by strengthening our cooperation in defence and security, infrastructure, agricultural production, education, new and emerging technologies, and skills promotion.
"Dear friends, in the field of defence and security, we have agreed to strengthen both our military relations and our defence industries.
"Today, we discussed mutual cooperation in the fields of counter-terrorism and cyber security. We decided to have an institutionalised platform to discuss economic and national security issues."
In the meantime, in his article in the Times of India newspaper, the Greek Prime Minister noted the defence cooperation between the two countries that has existed to date: "We have, of course, already achieved much already. In defence, the Indian Air Force and Navy recently participated in a joint exercise with the Greek Armed Forces, while the Hellenic Air Force and Navy will soon be present in the Indo-Pacific, strengthening capabilities in keeping seaways peaceful, open and inclusive."
At the level of the defence industry, in the past, an effort has been made by Greek state companies to enter into agreements for the co-production of various products with Indian companies in the context of major armament programs of the Indian Armed Forces.
Among private Greek companies, Hellenic Instruments has proposed the co-production of firing tubes for artillery shells while it has already sold stabilised pan-tilts for electro-optical sensor assemblies to Indian companies.
"As we welcome Prime Minister Modi to Greece to launch our strategic partnership, I remain confident that after over 2,500 years of interaction and exchange, the best is yet to come in Greek – Indian relations. Finding common ground in our shared future will be an asset for both our countries. More importantly, it can and will be a legacy that will benefit the entire world," Mitsotakis concluded in his TOI article.
By entering a Strategic Partnership, something Greece only has with France and the United Arab Emirates, Greece and India will now very closely coordinate on every file, ranging from tourism to culture, finance and industry, intelligence and security, diplomacy, and much more.
