Pursuing diplomacy, while modernizing our defenses
Iran’s attack against Israel on Tuesday with 180 missiles – most of which were intercepted by the Israeli Iron Dome and other additional antiballistic systems – showed how useful and urgently needed such an advanced defense system is.
Greece has made a decision to develop a multi-level air defense system – a Greek Iron Dome – in order to be able to protect itself from a potential attack that could take place by an array of possible means, from drones to short and medium-range ballistic missiles.
It is not only the Middle East. The characteristics of the military confrontation in Ukraine serve as an added reminder of what needs to be done.
Obviously, Greece would have preferred to have a friendly cooperative relationship with its neighbor to the east. Unfortunately, despite the relatively improved atmosphere of the last year and a half, we are not there yet, and Ankara’s Blue Homeland doctrine will not facilitate getting there.
Hence, reality obliges that we work on the diplomatic front, as we are doing (quite intensely as of late), but at the same time take the necessary measures to boost our defense capabilities. This is more pressing as the current anti-drone and anti-missile protection setup covering our east Aegean islands and other areas seems outdated; as time passes it is becoming increasingly obvious that the older Russian S-300s and TOR-M1s might be useful, but, to put it bluntly, they cannot really protect us in the present environment. Their technology and modus operandi are not up to the standards of today’s – let alone future – modern warfare.
Through that prism, the prospect of developing an effective missile defense system is widely seen as a necessary step into the future, especially as – despite being a proven reliable ally and not a difficult and unpredictable one – Greece is surprised by the latest developments with respect to the willingness of many in Washington to offer Ankara its advanced F-35s despite the latter’s behavior, not just toward Greece, but more generally as an ally and regional player.
In its exploratory efforts to develop its advanced defense system, Greece is looking to Israel, France, Germany and other possible contributors.
At the same time, as national security is extremely sensitive, the country’s defense posture should be based, to the extent possible, on domestic public and private actors, and technological innovation by Greek scientists and experts.
