“What the Government said about National Defense, it put into practice,” said the Member of Parliament of Serres and Secretary of International Relations and EU of New Democracy. Tasos Hatzivasileiouspeaking on Wednesday morning at OPEN.
Referring to international developments, he noted that “the situation in Ukraine has taught us that the form of war has completely changed” and went on to note that “very correctly the government and the Minister of Defense have turned to smarter weapons. It is a responsible choice of the government for the country to become a manufacturer of military equipment over time.”
Referring to the European defense mechanism SAFE, Mr. Hatzivasiliou explained that “it has to do purely with European funds, which through specific protocols pave the way for funding to countries participating in the mechanism, so as to support their defense and the European defense industry”. He clarified that “the SAFE program has nothing to do with possible bilateral agreements of Turkey with European or other countries for the direct purchase of defense material”, clarifying that Turkey does not join SAFE.
When asked about the agreement between Great Britain and Turkey for the supply of Eurofighter fighter jets, Mr. Hatzivasiliou recalled that “Ankara had started discussions to buy 100 F-35s, then asked to buy new ones and upgrade old F-16s and now ended up asking for 44 Eurofighters, many of which will be used.” As he added, the neighboring country “practically takes emergency solutions, which do not change the power relations”.
And he explained that “the British are saving the program and together 20,000 jobs, while Turkey is trying to cover its gaps”. At the same time, Deputy Serron stated that “in Turkey, from what is seen today, only 50 F-16 aircraft are combat-ready. So Ankara is in immediate need of strengthening its air force. However, the US door remains closed for F-35, otherwise Turkey would not have made this choice.”
Then, he underlined that “Greece cannot be an observer in every bilateral economic agreement that a European country wants to make. But everyone is judged.” And he added emphatically: “I do not agree with the British attitude. I remind you that the United Kingdom is a guarantor power in the Republic of Cyprus, together with Greece and Turkey. And it is currently giving Eurofighter to the country, which illegally owns the northern part of Cyprus and threatens Greece”.