Greece has approved a $3.1 billion purchase of an Israeli-made anti-missile, anti-aircraft, and anti-drone system called...

Greece has approved a $3.1 billion purchase of an Israeli-made anti-missile, anti-aircraft, and anti-drone system called "Achilles Shield," making it one of the largest single defense acquisitions in the country's history. The decision came Thursday at a meeting of Greece's council of foreign affairs and defense, chaired by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, according to a defense ministry source who spoke to AFP. The Achilles Shield is part of a broader 4.8 billion dollar spending package approved at the same session. The full package includes C-390 Millennium transport aircraft from Brazil, Heron drones, Apache helicopter missiles, Victa stealth watercraft from Britain, and frigate sonar systems. Greek defense contractors will contribute around $795 million to the dome project itself. The system draws comparisons to Israel's Iron Dome, which has been used extensively to intercept rockets and drones throughout the ongoing Middle East conflict. Greece is purchasing the system as it looks to protect its airspace along the EU's eastern flank, close to active conflict zones. Under Mitsotakis, Greece has been on a sustained arms buildup. The country already has 24 Rafale fighter jets on order and four Belharra frigates contracted from France, with the first frigate, the Kimon, already delivered. A deal for 20 American F-35 jets has also been signed. Greece currently devotes more than three percent of its GDP to defense, well above NATO's two percent benchmark. In 2025, Mitsotakis announced a 25 billion euro defense spending plan spread over 12 years, which he described as the most drastic military overhaul in modern Greek history. His government has cited lessons from the war in Ukraine as a driving factor behind the accelerated modernization push. #Greece #Mitsotakis #Defense