Paris (AFP)
French President Emmanuel Macron and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis signed a military contract on Tuesday for the order by Athens of three frigates as part of the strengthening of the "strategic partnership" between France and Greece.
The announcement comes after the cancellation of a huge 55 billion euro contract for submarines by Australia, which preferred a strategic partnership with the United States and the United Kingdom.
The acquisition by Greece of three Belharra frigates which will be built in France, in Lorient, for several billion euros, is a "testimony of confidence and demonstration of the quality of the French offer", Emmanuel Macron told the Elysée after the signing.
Mr. Mitsotakis specified that the contract also related to an option for an additional frigate, specifying that this agreement met "the needs of the Greek navy".
Greece's booming arms program aims to counter Turkish provocations in the eastern Mediterranean, against which France is one of the few EU countries to have publicly protested in recent months.
The French president also underlined that this strengthened partnership represents a "first daring step towards European strategic autonomy", a topic which it tries to carry in the face of the evolution of American foreign policy which refocuses its strategic priorities on China.
Athens last year launched a call for tenders for four frigates and the renovation of its Hydra frigates.
The French company Naval Group had participated and was opposed to the German TKMS, the Dutch Damen, the Italian Fincantieri and the American Lockheed Martin.
Earlier this month, Mitsotakis had already announced the surprise purchase of six French Rafale fighters, in addition to a previous contract at 2.5 billion euros, signed in January, for 12 used Rafale and six nines.
The agreement signed on Tuesday "helps protect the security, sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of our two states, while promoting security, stability and prosperity in regions of common interest," said Emmanuel Macron.
"It is in perfect coherence and in full compliance with our commitments to the EU and NATO, by strengthening its effectiveness for the protection of our territories and by allowing us to act more effectively and a more coordinated way together for peace and security in the Mediterranean, the Middle East, Africa and the Balkans ", he added.
© 2021 AFP