NATO and the EU are pressuring Greece to transfer Patriot missiles to Ukraine — media reports
Greece is under constant pressure from its NATO and European Union partners to transfer interceptor missiles for the Patriot systems to Ukraine. Ukraine has asked Athens to provide up to 200 PAC-2 missiles from the stockpiles of Greek Patriot batteries, according to eKathimerini, as reported by “European Truth.”
According to the publication’s sources, the Ukrainian side believes that the service life of some of the missiles, which have been in service with the Greek Air Force for 23 years, may be coming to an end. The request for ammunition came after preliminary talks regarding the possible transfer of some of the six Greek Patriot batteries, which did not result in an agreement.
Currently, Ukraine’s requests concern specifically the missiles, not the Patriot systems themselves. The transfer of ammunition is possible provided that it is deemed fit for use and not required for Greece’s combat needs.
One option under discussion is for Greece to sell the missiles to Norway, which would then transfer them to Ukraine. However, according to the report, Athens has not yet signaled any willingness to respond positively to this proposal.
Greek officials state that the country is already contributing to the security of its allies, notably by deploying a Patriot battery in Saudi Arabia to protect critical oil refinery infrastructure. Greece has also previously transferred Sea Sparrow and Crotale missiles to Ukraine after these systems neared the end of their service life in the Greek armed forces.
Earlier, Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen stated that his country had transferred everything it could from its stockpiles to Ukraine and called for pressure to be exerted on other states. In early July, the Norwegian government announced the allocation of 3 billion kroner, or 268 million euros, to strengthen Ukraine’s air defense, specifically through the PURL program for the procurement of U.S. weapons.
