Greece Parliament approves establishment of strategic partnership with France
October 8, 2021, 4:35 am

Greece Parliament approves establishment of strategic partnership with France

Greek parliament/Pixabay

The Greek national news agency AMNA reported, Greece's Parliament ratified on Thursday an agreement with France on the establishment of a strategic partnership for cooperation in defense and security.

The Xinhua news agency reported that the agreement, which was signed last week in Paris by French President Emmanuel Macron and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, passed by 191 votes in favor in the 300-member assembly.

Mitsotakis said in Parliament: "It is an accord that upgrades bilateral cooperation in defense, security and foreign policy."

Calling it a historic agreement, he said that "for the first time there is a clear clause of military assistance in the event of an attack by a third party on one of the two states."

In the context of the new accord, Greece will also purchase three French frigates in addition to an earlier order of French fighter aircraft.

The Greek leader said, the first Rafale planes are scheduled to be delivered this year, and the first Belharra frigate in 2025.

Source: xinhua

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Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.

Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.

On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.

It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.

Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.

Furthermore, many NATO member states in Europe fear that Trump might halt military aid to Ukraine after he previously criticized the U.S. for pouring funds into supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.