Germany is seeking to \u201csignificantly\u201d expand defence cooperation with Greece, including increased joint procurement initiatives, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said during an official visit to Athens on Monday.<\/strong><\/p>\nThe move comes as Greece continues a broad modernization of its armed forces, pursuing parallel defence partnerships with several strategic allies, most notably France, the United States, and Israel. The shifting network of defence alignments underscores Athens\u2019 effort to accelerate military upgrades amid evolving security challenges in the eastern Mediterranean.<\/p>\n
Speaking in Athens, Wadephul signalled Berlin\u2019s interest in deepening bilateral defence ties, particularly in maritime security and naval capabilities. However, both he and his Greek counterpart Giorgos Gerapetritis initially avoided providing detailed announcements on concrete agreements, indicating that discussions are still at an exploratory stage.<\/p>\n
Gerapetritis described Greece\u2019s position as open to deeper cooperation, while stressing that broader European considerations must remain central. \u201cIn addition to national interests, common European interests must be kept in mind and the autonomy of the European Union must be strengthened,\u201d he said, reflecting Athens\u2019 preference to anchor defence partnerships within the EU framework.<\/p>\n
A key area of focus for Germany is maritime defence cooperation, with Wadephul expected to visit the Skaramangas shipyard, the largest shipbuilding facility in the eastern Mediterranean. The site has become a focal point for European naval industry engagement. German defence company ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems has recently reached an agreement with the shipyard to modernise four submarines, a project that could serve as a foundation for expanded industrial cooperation between the two countries.<\/p>\n
Officials on both sides suggested that further opportunities may emerge in naval maintenance, submarine upgrades, and potential joint procurement programs, although no new contracts were formally announced during the visit.<\/p>\n
The talks take place against the backdrop of Greece\u2019s evolving defence partnerships, particularly its deepening strategic cooperation with France. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and French President Emmanuel Macron recently extended their bilateral strategic agreement, originally signed in 2021, for an additional five years. The agreement includes a French security guarantee for Greece, a development Mitsotakis described as a \u201chistoric day,\u201d highlighting the increasing role of bilateral defence commitments within Europe.<\/p>\n
However, Germany\u2019s parallel defence engagement with Turkey could complicate efforts to further strengthen ties with Athens. Relations between Greece and Turkey have remained tense in recent years due to disputes over maritime boundaries, gas exploration rights, and sovereignty issues in the eastern Mediterranean.<\/p>\n
Tensions were further underscored in October when Berlin approved a multi-billion-euro deal for the delivery of 20 Eurofighter jets to Turkey, reversing years of partial restrictions on arms exports to Ankara. The decision drew concern in Athens, where officials have urged greater sensitivity in German defence exports.<\/p>\n
Gerapetritis addressed this issue indirectly, calling on Berlin to ensure safeguards in arms agreements involving regional actors. \u201cWhat we consider to be the absolute minimum is ensuring that these systems are not used to the detriment of an allied country,\u201d he said, emphasizing Greece\u2019s expectation that NATO allies consider regional security implications in their defence trade policies.<\/p>\n
Beyond bilateral defence matters, the discussions also touched on broader geopolitical issues, including security developments around the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global energy chokepoint, and ongoing debates over European Union enlargement. Several Western Balkan countries, along with Ukraine, are currently seeking EU membership, placing institutional and geopolitical pressure on the bloc to define a clear accession roadmap.<\/p>\n
Wadephul stressed the importance of offering \u201ccredible prospects\u201d for EU accession to candidate countries. He also noted that Greece will assume a particularly influential role when it takes over the rotating presidency of the EU Council in the second half of 2027, positioning Athens as a key voice in shaping enlargement policy and broader European strategic priorities.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
\n
Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Germany is seeking to \u201csignificantly\u201d expand defence cooperation with Greece, including increased joint procurement initiatives, German…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":85034,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[2927,1578,3477,265,7511,182,7178],"class_list":["post-85033","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-asia","tag-cooperation","tag-defence","tag-expand","tag-germany","tag-greece","tag-joint","tag-procurement"],"yoast_head":"\n
Germany to Expand Defence Cooperation With Greece Through Joint Procurement - Gulf Times | News by the minute<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Gulf Times: Latest news across the GCC from UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, Yemen, Saudi Arabia\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/theasialive.com\/germany-to-expand-defence-cooperation-with-greece-through-joint-procurement\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Germany to Expand Defence Cooperation With Greece Through Joint Procurement\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Gulf News| UAE's Largest News aggregator site\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/theasialive.com\/germany-to-expand-defence-cooperation-with-greece-through-joint-procurement\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Gulf Times | News by the minute\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/100084981843786\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-05T03:49:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Germany-Foreign-Minister-Johann-Wadephul-Greece-Minister-of-Foreign-Affairs-Giorgos-Gerapetritis.avif\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"790\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"474\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"gulftimes\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@Gulftimesuae\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Gulftimesuae\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"gulftimes\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Germany to Expand Defence Cooperation With Greece Through Joint Procurement - Gulf Times | News by the minute","description":"Gulf Times: Latest news across the GCC from UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, Yemen, Saudi Arabia","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/theasialive.com\/germany-to-expand-defence-cooperation-with-greece-through-joint-procurement\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Germany to Expand Defence Cooperation With Greece Through Joint Procurement","og_description":"Gulf News| UAE's Largest News aggregator site","og_url":"https:\/\/theasialive.com\/germany-to-expand-defence-cooperation-with-greece-through-joint-procurement\/","og_site_name":"Gulf Times | News by the minute","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/100084981843786","article_published_time":"2026-05-05T03:49:00+00:00","og_image":[{"width":790,"height":474,"url":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Germany-Foreign-Minister-Johann-Wadephul-Greece-Minister-of-Foreign-Affairs-Giorgos-Gerapetritis.avif","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"gulftimes","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@Gulftimesuae","twitter_site":"@Gulftimesuae","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"gulftimes","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/theasialive.com\/germany-to-expand-defence-cooperation-with-greece-through-joint-procurement\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/?p=85033"},"author":{"name":"gulftimes","@id":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/#\/schema\/person\/4c5b0f90aae48bb43165ee6e39ddc977"},"headline":"Germany to Expand Defence Cooperation With Greece Through Joint Procurement","datePublished":"2026-05-05T03:49:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/?p=85033"},"wordCount":630,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/theasialive.com\/germany-to-expand-defence-cooperation-with-greece-through-joint-procurement\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Germany-Foreign-Minister-Johann-Wadephul-Greece-Minister-of-Foreign-Affairs-Giorgos-Gerapetritis.avif","keywords":["Cooperation","Defence","Expand","Germany","Greece","joint","procurement"],"articleSection":["Asia"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/theasialive.com\/germany-to-expand-defence-cooperation-with-greece-through-joint-procurement\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/?p=85033","url":"https:\/\/theasialive.com\/germany-to-expand-defence-cooperation-with-greece-through-joint-procurement\/","name":"Germany to Expand Defence Cooperation With Greece Through Joint Procurement - Gulf Times | News by the minute","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/theasialive.com\/germany-to-expand-defence-cooperation-with-greece-through-joint-procurement\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/theasialive.com\/germany-to-expand-defence-cooperation-with-greece-through-joint-procurement\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Germany-Foreign-Minister-Johann-Wadephul-Greece-Minister-of-Foreign-Affairs-Giorgos-Gerapetritis.avif","datePublished":"2026-05-05T03:49:00+00:00","description":"Gulf Times: Latest news across the GCC from UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, Yemen, Saudi Arabia","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/theasialive.com\/germany-to-expand-defence-cooperation-with-greece-through-joint-procurement\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/theasialive.com\/germany-to-expand-defence-cooperation-with-greece-through-joint-procurement\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/theasialive.com\/germany-to-expand-defence-cooperation-with-greece-through-joint-procurement\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Germany-Foreign-Minister-Johann-Wadephul-Greece-Minister-of-Foreign-Affairs-Giorgos-Gerapetritis.avif","contentUrl":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Germany-Foreign-Minister-Johann-Wadephul-Greece-Minister-of-Foreign-Affairs-Giorgos-Gerapetritis.avif","width":790,"height":474},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/theasialive.com\/germany-to-expand-defence-cooperation-with-greece-through-joint-procurement\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Germany to Expand Defence Cooperation With Greece Through Joint Procurement"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/#website","url":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/","name":"Gulf Times | News by the minute","description":"Largest News Aggregator in the Gulf","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/#organization"},"alternateName":"Gulf News Aggregator","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/#organization","name":"Gulf Times","url":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"","contentUrl":"","caption":"Gulf Times"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/100084981843786","https:\/\/x.com\/Gulftimesuae"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/#\/schema\/person\/4c5b0f90aae48bb43165ee6e39ddc977","name":"gulftimes","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a8f9c2e07a9cd7e7e7c302c8c7ce8d5e0865a0bbcc732793d6e761588fd10b03?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a8f9c2e07a9cd7e7e7c302c8c7ce8d5e0865a0bbcc732793d6e761588fd10b03?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a8f9c2e07a9cd7e7e7c302c8c7ce8d5e0865a0bbcc732793d6e761588fd10b03?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"gulftimes"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/gulftimes.ae"],"url":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85033","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=85033"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85033\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/85034"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=85033"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=85033"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=85033"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}