Athens, Paris edging toward deal on frigates

Negotiations between Athens and Paris for the acquisition by Greece of two state-of-the-art BELH@RRA frigates have entered their final stretch. Kathimerini understands that the deal will approach 3 billion euros. Although the deal has yet to be finalized, the two countries are expected to make announcements about it in the coming weeks.

The major obstacle to the deal had been the price tag, given Greece’s current fiscal constraints. The issue of defense cooperation was also raised in recent communications between Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and French President Emmanuel Macron, in view of next week’s European Union Summit where the main topic of discussion is the Recovery Fund, which is an issue that Athens and Paris have converging views on. 

At the same time, Athens continued its diplomatic activity yesterday to internationalize Greek positions with regard to the maritime border deal signed between Turkey and Libya. Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias presented the Greek view on the issue to the members of the United Nations Security Council.