Greek weapon transfers to Ukraine weaken security of the Aegean islands

Mitsotakis’ popularity continues to decline following Ukraine conflict fallout.

Paul Antonopoulos, independent geopolitical analyst

Ukraine received from Greece, according to local media, more than a hundred BMP-1s, 60 Stinger complexes, and other weapons and equipment. In April, Greek authorities announced that they would no longer transfer weapons to Ukraine so that they do not weaken their own security in face of renewed threats from Turkey.

None-the-less, Pro News reported that the Greek government planned to transfer an “incredible amount” of weapons to Ukraine, as Defense Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos described the initial deliveries. For the transfer to Kiev, weapons from the army warehouses on the Greek islands, whose sovereignty are being challenged by Turkey like never before, were used.

The media outlet said that the weapons included 122 BMP-1s along with ammunition; 15,000 73 mm shells; 20,000 AK-47s; 3.2 million rounds of 7.62 mm caliber; 60 MANPADS FIM-92 Stinger; 17,000 150 mm artillery shells; 1,000 RPG-18 anti-tank grenades.

In April, Panagiotopoulos said that Athens no longer planned to send military equipment to Kiev as this would weaken Greece’s defence itself. By that time, the Greek authorities had already sent two C-130 aircraft with Kalashnikov assault rifles and portable launchers to Ukraine.

However, despite this assurance, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced in May that Berlin had concluded an agreement with Athens: Greece would transfer Eastern bloc-made tanks to Kiev and in return they would be replaced with slightly more modern German vehicles. This received huge criticism as it was not Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitstotakis who announced this initiative to Greek citizens but Scholz, in addition to this initiative once again violating the neutrality that the overwhelming majority of people in Greece want the government to adopt for the Ukraine War.

Moscow condemns the supply of weapons to Ukraine by Western countries and accuses the latter of trying to prolong the conflict. In early June, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov reiterated that the goals of the military operation would be achieved despite the transfer of foreign weapons to Kiev, which would inviably cause Ukraine “more suffering.”

For now, the Greek government has hidden some of the weapons and information in what quantities it has sent them to Ukraine. As of February 27, Greece sent 40 tons of military equipment via Poland to Ukraine on two C-130 aircraft. The Greeks, just as they did from Scholz in the latest arms deal, learned about the sending of new batches of weapons from US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and not from their own government. It was only after this that Panagiotopoulos finally acknowledged the supply of weapons to Ukraine.

It is recalled that even before the start of the Russian military operation, Western countries began to supply Ukraine with a large number of weapons, including anti-tank missiles. Recently, heavy equipment has also been supplied, in particular tanks, howitzers, and MLRS. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov noted that any cargo that contains weapons for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russia.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry stated that NATO countries are “playing with fire” by supplying weapons to Ukraine. In the Greek context, this may certainly be true as Mitsotakis may very well have supplied weapons to Ukrainian neo-Nazis like the Azov Battalion, who since 2014 terrorized the Greek minority of Mariupol and its surrounding villages, believed to number up to 120,000 people.

Leader of the opposition SYRIZA party, Alexis Tsipras, criticized Mitsotakis for the supply of weapons, saying that Ukraine is full of Nazi extremist groups. Similar criticisms have been made from other opposition parties too, remembering that a poll found that over 70% of Greeks want the government to adopt a policy of neutrality.

Although it is not confirmed yet whether defense equipment was directly taken off the islands, the removal of any weapons from any part of Greece is a reckless policy, especially when considering that Turkey has escalated its claims over the Greek islands and as military tensions are building. Mitsotakis’ decision to prioritize Ukraine’s military over Greece’s defensive needs is one that has already come back to haunt him since Turkey is now not only emboldened to escalate tensions, but more importantly, has angered many voters and diminished the popularity of the ruling New Democracy party.