The Greek government, led by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, has announced plans to ask the EU to help finance its defense acquisitions. The funds are to be allocated under the EU's SAFE program, which is aimed at financing defense procurement and developing military technologies.
According to Ekathimerin, Greece plans to request €1.2 billion from the EU to fund the purchase of up to 36 PULS multiple launch rocket systems from Elbit Systems and Barak MX air defense systems from Israel Aerospace Industries. From Defense Express, we would like to raise the question of how realistic it is that Greece could supply its Patriot systems to Ukraine after receiving Israeli Barak MX air defense systems.
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Earlier reports indicated that Greece intends to purchase an unspecified number and variant of Barak MX air defense systems, along with 38 PULS MLRSs, for a total of €500 million. These acquisitions are part of a broader €25 billion modernization effort aimed at strengthening the Greek armed forces, particularly in the field of long-range missiles.
Against this backdrop, the Israeli Barak MX, a fully modular air defense system, is drawing significant attention. It is capable of firing three types of missiles: MR (Short-Medium Range), LR (Long Range), and ER (Extended Range). These missiles can engage targets at ranges of approximately 35 km, 70 km, and 150 km, respectively. The MR and LR variants can reach altitudes of up to 20 km, while the ER variant can engage targets at altitudes of up to 30 km.
It is capable of using various radars and can be operated from a transportable, mobile or stationary control center. Besides conventional targets, the ER missile is specifically designed to shoot down cruise and ballistic missiles, including the Iskander. Overall, the Barak MX offers capabilities similar to those of the U.S. Patriot system.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis emphasized that even if they wanted to purchase additional Patriot systems, it would take 4-5 years, "simply because there is no production capacity." However, "Israel is a country with which we share a strategic alliance and could potentially supply these capabilities faster."
Despite having a large number of these systems and the logic of continuing their modernization, Greece has opted for the Israeli Barak MX. It is reasonable to expect that Greece will fully transition to these or alternative systems instead of the Patriots in the future.
The purchase of new air defense systems could free up some Patriots, which might then be transferred or sold to Ukraine, potentially through third parties. It should be noted that Greece has been quite categorical in refusing to supply even Soviet S-300 systems, let alone Patriots, making this possibility rather unlikely.
In addition, Greece critically needs more air defense systems to protect its airspace. Therefore, given all these facts, it is unlikely that Greek Patriot systems will end up in Ukraine.
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