Greece signs $3.5bn air defence deal with Israel

Greece signs $3.5bn air defence deal with Israel Submitted by Sean Mathews on Mon, 08/31/2026 - 15:07 Deepening defence ties comes amid rising tensions between Israel and Turkey, Greece's historic foe Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) shakes hands with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis after a meeting in Jerusalem on 22 December 2025 (Abir Sultan/AFP) Off Greece and Israel signed a $3.5bn defence deal on Monday that will see Israel build a multi-layered air defence system for Greece underscoring the deepening ties between the two Mediterranean countries. "This is the largest defense export deal in the history of Israel-Greece relations, and one of the largest in the history of the State of Israel," Israel’s defense ministry wrote in a statement. Under the agreement, Israel will contribute to an integrated anti-drone, anti-ballistic missile and anti-aircraft air defence system that Greece is developing dubbed Achilles Shield. The system's total price tag is estimated at $28bn with completion expected by 2036. Greece will purchase Israel's David's Sling and SPYDER systems produced by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and the Barak MX system made by Israel Aerospace Industries, as well as MMR multi-mission radars for air surveillance, manufactured by IAI unit ELTA Systems. Greece will be only the second customer for Israel’s David’s Sling after Finland, a fellow Nato member that borders Russia. David’s Sling is one component of Israel’s integrated air defence. It is intended to intercept heavier rockets along with some ballistic missiles. The Iron Dome is used to shoot down short-range rockets and drones. The Arrow 2 and 3 systems are used to down ballistic missiles, with the latter able to shoot down exoatmospheric hypersonic missiles. As part of Monday’s agreement, Greece will also receive a new national command-and-control system, developed by Rafael. An additional $26m deal will see Rafael provide Drone Dome systems to protect strategic sites against drones. The Turkey angle Greece and Israel's strategic partnership is reshaping geopolitics in the Eastern Mediterranean. It comes at a time of rising tensions between Israel and Turkey, the latter having been Greece’s historic foe for two centuries. The Greek government of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has tried to deescalate tensions with Turkey. The Greek leader’s comments after a Nato summit in Ankara this summer focused on bilateral areas of cooperation. However, it remains an open question how Greece’s deepening ties with Israel will impact that strategy. The New Byzantines: An exploration of Greece's Middle East ties, which are resurfacing in a turbulent world Read More » Turkey and Israel are increasingly clashing across the region, from Syria to the Horn of Africa. Israel attacked Syria’s Abu al-Duhur airbase earlier this month after claiming that Turkey planned to deploy troops there. US Ambassador to Turkey and envoy to Syria, Tom Barrack, said the attack risked a direct confrontation with Turkey. He said that Israel may have been trying to bait Turkey into a wider conflict. Besides the geopolitical calculations, the Greek government faces increasing opposition to its deepening relationship with Israel amid the genocide in Gaza. A 2026 Pew Research poll found that 65 percent of Greeks opposed the partnership, although many view it as a necessary evil because of what they perceive as an expansionist Turkey. The deepening defence ties coincide with a boom in Israeli real estate investment in Greece. Israelis entered the Greek market in force after the financial crisis, but continued buying has contributed to pricing Greeks out of their housing market. Greece was historically an advocate of the Palestinian cause. In 1947, Greece and India joined Muslim-majority countries like Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Turkey to vote against the UN Partition Plan for Palestine. Greece also has historic ties in occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank through the Orthodox Patriarchate, whose properties have come under attack from settlers. The Patriarch in Jerusalem is a Greek national. Arms Trade News Post Date Override 0 Update Date Mon, 05/04/2020 - 21:19 Update Date Override 0