Greece is the most significant member of NATO which Russia works with, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov said yesterday as he completed a visit to Athens aimed at boosting Russian arms sales.

“I should underline that of all of the NATO member states, Greece is the most important with which Russia cooperates,” Ivanov said.

The Russian minister met with defense officials as Moscow attempts to convince the armed forces to buy Russian arms and technology in the future. Ivanov is looking to secure deals to sell fighter jets, armored transport vehicles and S300 missiles to Greece, sources said.

Greek Defense Minister Evangelos Meimarakis said that Russian arms would be considered as potential purchases when the relevant tenders are issued.

Meanwhile, Ivanov admitted that Russia has recently been developing a closer relationship with Turkey.

“Russia’s trade balance with Turkey is much larger than Russia’s trade balance with Greece,” said the minister. “At the same time, however, the military and technical cooperation between Russia and Turkey is far less developed than the relationship with Greece.”

Also, speaking to Kathimerini, Ivanov warned of the dangers of granting Kosovo independence.

“The possible independence of Kosovo will open a Pandora’s box,” said Ivanov, who did not rule out the possibility of Russia vetoing such a move at the UN Security Council.