Israel is ready to share with Greece its operational experience in using the American F-35 fighter jets (F-35), as part of efforts to deepen strategic cooperation between the two countries amid growing instability in the Middle East, said Israeli Armed Forces spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani in an interview with the newspaper “Kathimerini“, BTA reported.
“Israel has the greatest experience in the entire region when it comes to the F-35. "We will do everything we can to share our knowledge with the Greeks," Shoshani said in the interview, noting that Athens has shown interest in Israeli tactics for using the aircraft, especially in suppressing enemy air defenses and striking critical and time-sensitive targets.
According to agreements that Athens and Washington concluded in 2024, the first of a total of 20 F-35 fighters are expected to arrive in Greece in early 2030. Greek pilots have already gained experience on such machines, thanks to their joint training with their Israeli counterparts.
The news comes at a time when Greece, Cyprus and Israel are seeking to strengthen their defense ties amid tensions in the Middle East related to the situation in Iran, the competition between Turkey and Israel in Syria and the renewed activity of “Hezbollah“ in Lebanon, notes “Kathimerini“.
In mid-December last year, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in Jerusalem with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides and announced that his country had agreed to strengthen its security cooperation with Athens and Nicosia.