The French Nexter aims to acquire the Greek ELVO to replace the middle segment of the Hellenic Army

In many respects, the Greek armed forces are the most admirable on the old continent. With an annual budget of €8 billion, the country holds the top step of the podium in terms of defense effort, with 3.6% of its GDP. Furthermore, despite this limited budget, the Greek armies manage to field a considerable force with 142,000 soldiers and conscripts under the flags, as well as 220,000 active reservists, and more than 2 million mobilizable soldiers out of a population of 10.6 million. residents. Unlike a majority of European countries, particularly in Western Europe, defense issues are also at the heart of public opinion, including during elections, making the defense of the country a real national cause for a majority of Greeks.

It must be said that unlike Europeans who rediscovered a year ago the feeling of insecurity provided by a bellicose and aggressive neighbor, the Greeks have lived for several decades under the threat of an increasingly powerful Turkish army, threats largely accentuated since the coming to power of President RT Erdogan who has continued, since 2003 when he took the position of Prime Minister, to stir up tensions with his neighbor, whether over Cyprus, the islands of the Aegean Sea or for several years, the exploitation of the resources of the Greek Exclusive Economic Zone. And the Turkish armies do not lack power, with a budget twice as large as Athens, 425,000 active soldiers but also 2,200 tanks, 10,000 armored vehicles, 350 combat planes, 12 submarines as well as 23 frigates. and corvettes. In addition, Ankara has invested considerably over the last 20 years in the development of its defense industry, allowing it to quickly modernize its 3 components.

It is precisely this rapid modernization that worries Athens, especially since the two countries being members of NATO, they cannot invoke Article 5 of the Alliance to face an aggression of one by the other. other. In recent years, the Greek authorities have made significant efforts to modernize the country's naval and air forces, with the acquisition of 24 Rafale combat aircraft, 4 Type 214 submarines, as well as 3 FDI frigates to cite only the most important programs. In the land domain, the Hellenic forces have undertaken the modernization of their heavy component, in particular 123 of its Leopard 2A4s which are upgraded to the A7 standard, the acquisition of 40 Marder IFVs, as well as ongoing negotiations to replace the BMP- 1A still in service by 300 second-hand M1A2s, as well as by 170 to 205 KF41 Lynx from Rheinmetall. But the bulk of the effort to modernize this army remains to come, with no less than 2,500 armored vehicles from the middle segment reaching the end of their operational life in the years to come. It is precisely for this reason that the French Nexter is reportedly in negotiations with the Israeli shareholders of the Greek armored vehicle manufacturer ELVO.

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