Putin to Mitsotakis: "We prohibit you from transferring the S-300 and other Russian arms to any third country"

Maria Zakharova, the official representative of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, commenting on rumors that Greece is preparing to transfer Russian S-300 and Tor-M1 systems to Armenia, stated (as it is obvious) that this cannot be done without Moscow's permission.

Message from the President of Russia

Zakharova conveyed a message from President Vladimir Putin to the Mitsotakis government regarding recent speculations. "No requests from Greece to re-export Russian weaponry to Armenia have been received," Maria Zakharova said during a weekly briefing. She reminded of the need to comply with bilateral intergovernmental agreements on military-technical cooperation (1995) and the supply of military products (2013).

Explanation on S-300's Status in Greece

There was a widely circulated science-fiction scenario, and it is necessary to explain why the S-300 will never leave Greece:

Firstly, because the Russians will not grant permission for their return to Russia.

Secondly, because Greece was the first NATO country to acquire such air defense systems (the second was Turkey).

Thirdly, selling them to Armenia is prohibited, as Russia does not want to damage its relations with Azerbaijan, especially since Armenia is led by Nikol Pashinyan, who believes he can drive out the Russians and station Americans and French on Armenian military bases.

A "end-user certificate" is a powerful certificate of legitimacy that Greece cannot override unless it breaks diplomatic relations with Russia and declares war.

Who is Spreading These Rumors

Primarily Israeli representatives in Greece, who are eager to address the sale of anti-aircraft systems, forming an anti-air "dome," for two billion euros. Certainly, Greece has the right to export the S-300 and lock them in a warehouse—since only one of the two batteries is operational—but it won't receive a single euro from their sale abroad. They could be sold illegally on the international market as spare parts or missiles, but the consequences would be severe for Greece.

Portraying Russia as an adversary in all international organizations and forums would be very unwise on the part of the Greek government. The same applies to the Tor-M1; however, no permission is necessary for the OSA-AK systems, which were provided by East Germany following its reunification with West Germany. But there are not many of these systems in service, and subsequently, Russia supplied 50 more of the same systems.

Re-export Restrictions on Systems Purchased from Russia

The same situation applies to Cyprus's medium-range air defense systems Buk-M1 and Tor-M1, also in Cyprus’s arsenal. They will never be allowed to be re-sold to another country, even though Israelis and Americans know everything about them—not only from joint exercises with Greece and Cyprus but also from completely illegal access they obtained to the internals of these systems, knowledge of which is widespread.

Russia is well aware of this; otherwise, they would not sell such weaponry to a NATO country. The same is true for Turkey's S-400s, which also pose a risk of secret data being transferred to the U.S. and other states. Russians are aware of this but have certain guarantees, which they believe cover them.

Certainly, Ukraine and Slovakia have S-300s, and the latter is even a NATO member, with no doubt that Americans have full access to them. But, of course, they do not have access to the PMU1 model that Greece possesses, which is the most advanced. However, this does not matter much, as the Americans already illegally acquired Ukraine’s S-300 for tests before the onset of the war.

In any case, approval will never be given, and what is written is complete nonsense. Those writing it do not understand the international procedures for arms procurement and international realities.

We need to emphasize and highlight that those who abandoned the S-300 PMU1 in Greece, as well as the military and political leadership of the country, committed an act equivalent to "betrayal." On one hand, these systems were paid for by the Greek people and intended to ensure the country's security; on the other hand, an action that would justify their removal, such as the free provision of two Patriot PAC-3 batteries with at least some capabilities compared to S-300, has not happened.

In other words, our friends and beloved allies ask for everything and give nothing, as usual. Who would refuse a free provision of two Patriot batteries along with operational cost coverage and the simultaneous withdrawal of two S-300 batteries?