Israel and Greece Sign €3 Billion ‘Achilles Shield’ Air Defense Deal
Greece is set to build a new multi-layered air defense architecture around Israeli systems, in the largest defense deal ever signed between the two countries
Photo: Israel Ministry of Defense
Israel and Greece have signed an approximately €3 billion defense agreement under which Israel will build a comprehensive, multi-layered air defense network for Greece, bringing together several of Israel’s major missile and air defense systems under a new national command-and-control architecture.
The agreement, signed Monday at Israel’s Ministry of Defense headquarters by Israeli Defense Ministry Director General Maj. Gen. (Res.) Amir Baram and his Greek counterpart Ioannis Bouras, is the largest defense export deal in the history of Israel-Greece relations and one of the largest ever concluded by Israel.
Known in Greece as “Achilles Shield,” the program is designed to protect against a broad spectrum of threats, ranging from ballistic missiles and aircraft to cruise missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles.
At its core will be David’s Sling, developed by Israel’s Missile Defense Organization and Rafael, alongside IAI’s BARAK MX and Rafael’s SPYDER air defense systems. The architecture will also include MMR multi-mission radars from ELTA Systems, IAI’s subsidiary, and a new national command-and-control system to integrate the various layers, which will be developed by Rafael.
The result will be a defense network built around Israeli technology rather than the acquisition of a single standalone weapons system.
For Israel, the deal represents a major expansion of its defense relationship with Greece and a significant European market win. For Greece, it marks the centerpiece of what the Israeli Defense Ministry describes as the country’s most ambitious air defense buildup of the past decade.
The agreement comes as European countries are reassessing air and missile defenses amid the growing threat posed by ballistic missiles, drones and other aerial systems. Israel is seeking to leverage years of operational experience with those threats—and the battlefield performance of its systems—to expand its defense exports.
Greece will also become the second European country to acquire David’s Sling, according to Rafael Chairman Yuval Steinitz.
The deal extends beyond equipment. Israel and Greece will expand industrial defense cooperation, including knowledge and technology transfers to Greek industry, under the government-to-government framework between the two countries.
A separate €26 million agreement signed alongside Achilles Shield will provide Greece with Rafael’s Drone Dome systems for protecting strategic sites against drones and other UAVs.
The deal brings together the three major Israeli defense companies in a single national air defense project. Rafael will supply David’s Sling and SPYDER and develop the command-and-control system, while IAI will provide BARAK MX and MMR radar systems through ELTA.
Israeli Defense Ministry officials also emphasized the economic and strategic importance of large defense exports. Baram said government-to-government agreements of this scale can help expand Israeli production lines, build national stockpiles and strengthen Israel’s defense-industrial base.
The agreement is another sign that Israel’s combat experience is becoming an increasingly important selling point for its defense industry. Since the outbreak of the war, Israeli defense companies have continued supplying foreign customers while operating under an emergency framework focused on meeting Israel’s own wartime requirements.
With Achilles Shield, that operational experience is now being translated into one of Greece’s largest defense modernization projects—and into a major new export win for Israel.