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The Prime Minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, has underscored the country’s stance on the participation of non-European nations in European defense matters. Mitsotakis, after a meeting with the European Council President António Costa in Athens, stated unequivocally that countries posing a threat to EU member states should not be part of such discussions.
Greeks stand in solidarity with Poland, especially following the unauthorized intrusion of 19 drones—presumably from Russia—into Polish airspace early Wednesday, setting a record for such breaches.
Mitsotakis also emphasized Greece’s support for joint EU and US efforts to conclude the conflict in Ukraine, while advocating for Ukraine’s inclusion in the dialogue to respect international law and uphold the sanctity of borders and provide requisite security assurances.
In Championing the strategic autonomy of the European Union, the Greek leader called for a pan-European financial instrument to bolster defense markets of common interest like missile defense. He believes the time for debating this is overdue and anticipates discussing this further at the upcoming European Council meetings.
Europe’s Russia Challenge
In press remarks after the meeting, Costa also recognized the security threat that Russia presents, particularly to Europe’s eastern border. “The Eastern flank is clearly threatened by Russia,” he said, “but we can’t lose sight of the need for a comprehensive, 360-degree approach to our security”.
He recognized the serious nature of deliberate violations of airspace, such as those seen recently in Poland and Romania, highlighting the necessity for collective action across the continent to maintain security from Cyprus to Finland, and from Portugal to Romania.
NATO’s recent issuance of the “Eastern Sentry” program, announced by Secretary General Mark Rutte, is seen as a deterrence against further Russian incursions and a show of unity with Poland. This initiative comes after Poland’s airspace was breached, an act deemed “unacceptable” by the NATO chief, who affirmed the alliance’s commitment to defending all member states.
Romania, in turn, has denounced what it describes as Moscow’s “irresponsible actions” following an alleged intrusion of a Russian drone into its airspace on the eve of a Ukraine airstrike, a situation that prompted Romania to respond with scrambling fighter jets to protect its territorial integrity.
