National Defence Minister Nikos Dendias attended the opening of the international defence and security exhibition “Eurosatory 2024” in Paris on Monday, cutting the expo’s ribbon with French Defence Minister Sébastien Lecornu.
The two ministers also had a meeting during which the two countries’ delegations discussed further strengthening of defence cooperation, both at the bilateral level and within the EU and NATO, as well as developments in regional and international issues in the field of security and defense.
Additionally, they discussed the participation of France in the Hellenic Defence Innovation Ecosystem and the organization of a Symposium of Defense Innovation in Greece in the autumn, where France will be the honored country.
“We discussed a series of issues in the framework of the strategic agreement with France, which I had the honor of signing as a foreign minister three years ago,” Dendias said following the meeting.
“We analyzed the situation in Ukraine and the Middle East, discussed major arms programs, including frigates and Rafale jets, and broader cooperation between the French Republic and the Greek Republic,” Dendias said following the meeting. “We also discussed the Greek prime minister’s proposal, together with the Polish prime minister, for the creation of a joint European air defence ‘dome’,” he emphasized.
Earlier, Dendias, accompanied by Cypriot counterpart Vassilis Palmas, inaugurated the Greek defence industry stand. “It is an important step today for Greek defence operations because for the first time since the crisis we have a single Greek stand under the auspices of the
Greek Ministry of National Defence,” he said. At the expo, Dendias also held a series of meetings with representatives of defence and defense technology companies.
On Monday night, the Greek minister will attend a reception by the French defence minister in honor of all his counterparts at the fair.
