Greece to buy US-made devices against Turkish drones

Yorgo Kırbaki - Athens

Greek parliament special standing committee on armament programs and contracts approved the procurement of three MQ-9 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and the U.S. AAV-7 armored amphibious vehicles that will cost 691 million euros ($703 million).

The flight range of the U.S.-made MQ-9 UAVs is 1,850 kilometers (1,149 miles), they can stay in the air for 27 hours and fly up to 15 kilometers (9 miles) high and they will constantly monitor the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean, according to Greek officials.

AAV-7 armored vehicles will be shipped to Greece after their maintenance is completed in the U.S.

These vehicles, which are stated to have a range of up to 37 kilometers (23 miles) can carry up to 25 marines and land on the shore before the ship approaches the shore.

Even though Greece recently received six Rafale fighter jets from France, the acquisition of those airplanes did not ease its concerns over Türkiye’s UAVs and armed drones, according to the Greek media outlets.

As part of those efforts, during a visit he paid to Israel on Jan. 20, Greek Defense Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos explored options to acquire anti-drone technologies from this country, the Greek daily To Vima said last year.

Moreover, Greek Foreign Ministry mulls exerting diplomatic pressure on Germany for the country to stop selling some parts which are used in the production of Turkish drones, the newspaper said.

The low-cost Bayraktar TB2 drones are capable of executing three to four flights a day at low, medium and high altitudes, observing the movements of the Greek navy ships and defenses on the Greek Islands, according to the officials.