Greece's defence assistance in the development of military operations on the Ukrainian front is proving invaluable in many ways, as was evident from yesterday's meeting between Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
In particular, in the bilateral agenda of the meeting, which included all the major regional issues of the period, the issue of the Russian attack on Ukraine was quite high on the agenda, and not only for symbolic or political reasons. On the contrary, an exchange of East German-made BMP-1 armoured combat vehicles of the Greek Army for an equal number of German-made Marder armoured combat vehicles was initiated between the two sides, so that the Greek armoured vehicles could be made available for the needs of the Ukrainian armed forces.
The high Ukrainian demand for tanks was recorded from the very first days of the Russian invasion of the country last February and is directly related to its terrain. It is the second largest country in Europe with an area of 600,000 square kilometres and almost entirely flat, making armoured vehicles a key tool for the successful outcome of ground operations. Moreover, the Russian invasion relied very heavily on tanks in the early days (before the start of mass bombing even within cities for mainly political reasons), with the result that the West constantly supplied the Ukrainian army with Stinger and Javellin portable anti-aircraft missiles and anti-tank missiles.
In the Greek case, the BMP-1 armoured fighting vehicles (TOMA in Greek) are Russian-built in 1966, while Athens acquired them in 1994 from the East German stockpile. The fact that they are Russian-made combat vehicles is the most critical element for the Ukrainians, as Russian combat technology is extremely familiar to them (a very large part - if not all - of the Ukrainian armed forces have been trained on it), so no extra time is required for training, as well as a special effort to familiarise their operators with their capabilities. Also, as they are armoured vehicles developed at the beginning of the Cold War, they fully reflect the Cold War nuclear doctrine, i.e. they have special systems to protect the crew from biological and nuclear weapons (NBC protection system). Although heavily armed, the BMP-1 is considered technologically obsolete as a combat vehicle, although in theory it is also amphibious in terms of its technical specifications.
In contrast, the late Cold War saw the start of the Marder-type armoured fighting vehicle programme, which was upgraded in 1988. Clearly more modern than the BMP-1, Marder-type armoured vehicles are the main TOMA (Armoured Fighting Vehicles) of the German army, although as of this year the German armed forces have begun to take delivery of the ultra-modern Puma. In the case of the German armoured vehicles too, protection of the crew from nuclear and biological weapons is foreseen, while one of their main features, which makes their transfer tempting for Athens, is the fact that they carry MILAN anti-tank missiles that have been used for decades in the Greek army, so it is easy for the operators to integrate them.
The chronicle of the exchange
Meanwhile, the agreement to exchange the tanks was confirmed yesterday by the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, explaining that he had agreed to proceed with Athens in a cooperation similar to that between Germany and the Czech Republic, under which the latter delivers to Ukraine armoured vehicles from the stock of the former Warsaw Pact, which are then replaced with corresponding German armament systems.
"You know about the corresponding, very specific arrangements we have found with the Czech Republic. I have now decided with the Greek Prime Minister that we want to do the same with Greece, which has such equipment, and we will provide them with German armoured personnel carriers for this purpose. This will now be discussed very specifically between the Ministries of Defence until the end and then it can also be implemented quickly," the German Chancellor said, adding that "I have also spoken with my Polish colleague about how we can ensure that the good agreements we have with the Czech Republic, which are now being prepared with Greece and other individual countries, can also go ahead with Poland. We both want to achieve this with the best, good cooperation as well."
With the implementation of the agreement now moving to the level of the relevant ministries, the Ministry of Defence yesterday also commented on its content, stating that "the details will be settled in the near future between the Ministry of Defence and the Federal Ministry of Defence of Germany".
The announcement of the Ministry of National Defence. Olaf Scholz, it was agreed to provide East German-made BMP-1 Armoured Fighting Vehicles (received in 1994) in order to send them to Ukraine and their simultaneous replacement with an equal number of German-made Marder Armoured Fighting Vehicles.
The details will be worked out in the near future between the Ministry of Defence and the German Federal Ministry of Defence in order to put the agreement into effect as soon as possible.
Strong reactions
At the same time, the arrows of the parliamentary opposition were drawn by the bilateral agreement between Greece and Germany on the exchange of tanks, with Koumoundourou pointing out that "the government is increasing Greece's dangerous involvement in the war by sending tanks." Moreover, "we consider it unthinkable that the Greek people learn this news from the German Chancellor," SYRIZA-PS stresses, calling on the Mitsotakis government "to stop making decisions in secret on critical national issues."
The issue of the tanks was revisited late last night by SYRIZA-PS' National Defence Ministers, Thodoris Dritsas and Giorgos Tsipras, raising a series of questions to the government, including whether there is a financial cost to Greece due to the exchange, as well as "from which units will the vehicles be sent to Ukraine? Is it from the islands amid pressure for their demilitarization?", they asked.
The reaction of Harilaou Trikoupis was also high-toned, accusing the Prime Minister of a secret deal. "As we have been informed by the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, the Greek Prime Minister has agreed to the delivery of Greek armoured vehicles to Ukraine, which will then be replaced by German vehicles," PASOK-KINAL said in a statement, concluding that "the government must inform the political parties about all aspects of this agreement, which Mr. Mitsotakis suppressed during his statements to journalists, raising reasonable questions about the actual content of the meeting with Mr. Solts."
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