Greece-France pact a game-changer, to give naval supremacy to Athens over Turkey: Analyst

A pact between Greece and France is a "game-changer" in the Eastern Mediterranean as French frigates will give naval supremacy to Athens over Turkey, said a defence analyst.

Greece on Thursday ratified a mutual defence pact with France, the first between two NATO members. The two countries are already bound to help each other from an attack originating outside the alliance.

Under the pact, Athens will buy three French warships as part of a strategy to boost its defence capacities in the Eastern Mediterranean amid recurring tensions with longtime foe Turkey.

"The FDI frigate is the 5th generation of combat ship for naval supremacy and crisis management," Tehran Times quoted defence analyst Andreas Mountzouroulias as saying.

Mountzouroulias added, "This warship is designed for navies looking for a compact frigate able to perform a large range of missions stand-alone or within a task force either."

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis hailed the agreement as the cornerstone of an independent European defence policy.

"The defence of European interests in the Mediterranean now acquires new substance," Mitsotakis told parliament. "If attacked, our country will have at its side the most powerful military on the continent, the sole European nuclear power."

Article 2 of the Partnership states that the pair will assist each other "with all the means at their disposal, in the event that armed force is needed, if they both ascertain that an attack is taking place against the territory of either."

Greece's main security threat comes from fellow NATO member Turkey. The two countries came to open hostilities in August last year as they battled over their conflicting claims to the Eastern Mediterranean.

( With inputs from ANI )