Defense Minister hails ‘radical changes’ to Armed Forces
Greece’s Armed Forces are undergoing a radical overhaul in what the prime minister has described as the “biggest reform program in the history of the modern Greek state,” Defense Minister Nikos Dendias confirmed on Monday.
Presenting the broad strokes of the plan “to prepare the Armed Forces for the 21st century” in an interview with Antenna TV as Greece celebrates Independence Day, Dendias said the reforms are sweeping.
“We need to make some very radical changes, in the weapons systems, in the structure, in innovation – that is, in the ability to create new systems using our own capabilities – in the military service, in our own significant and motivated personnel, everything needs to change. Everything needs to change in order to maintain exactly the same goal: the ability to protect our sovereignty and independence,” Dendias said.
Revamping the Air Force is high on the list of priorities, the minister said, describing plans to bring more homogeneity and interoperability to the fleet with upgrades and acquisitions.
“We have a cartload of different types of aircraft. We have F-4s, Mirage 2000-5s, Block 30 F-16s, Block 50 F-16s, Block 52 F-16s, Viper F-16s and Rafales. We cannot carry on this way. The F-4s need to be retired and, if possible, sold. The Mirage 2000-5 is an exceptionally capable plane and can be sold. The Block 30 F-16s need to be sold. And I think we will be able to sell the [Mirage 2000-5 and Block 30 F-16s],” Dendias said, pointing to the enormous cost of maintaining many different types of aircraft as opposed to having compatible fleets.
“As for the remaining aircraft, we need to get the F-16s to Viper level, we need to strengthen our fleet of Rafales – we have 24 but it would be good to reach 30 – and, of course, to acquire the Block 4 F-35, which has not become airborne yet but will have cured all the childhood illness of the fourth-generation aircraft,” he added.
Dendias conceded that there have been delays in the program for upgrading Greece’s F-16s to Viper level, but said he believes the country will have an “adequate fleet” of the aircraft by 2027, “at the latest.”
He also admitted that revamping the Army will be a significant challenge. “It’s going to take work; quite a lot of work,” Dendias said.
