Dendias: “Our Country Is Protected” After Drone Reports Near Crete
Greece's Defense Minister Nikos Dendias has flatly denied reports of drones operating near Crete, telling the public that Greek authorities have no intelligence confirming any such threat and that the country is fully secure.
Speaking Wednesday, Dendias pointed to precautionary measures already in place across Crete and Karpathos, including Greek naval vessels equipped with air-defense systems currently operating in the region. He stated plainly that if a credible drone threat existed, Greek authorities would already know about it.
The remarks were a direct response to comments made in parliament by Dimitris Koutsoumbas, who raised concerns about a possible drone threat originating from Lebanon. Dendias dismissed the suggestion and said no such intelligence had been received.
The minister also addressed Cyprus, insisting the island is protected from aerial threats by Greek military equipment already deployed there. He described Greece's naval and air presence in the region as being designed to protect the entire population of Cyprus, not just Greek territory.
On Turkey, Dendias said Ankara understands Greece's need to defend its territory and did not view the Greek deployments as provocative. He added he had personally had no contact with Turkish officials on the matter and was uncertain whether talks had occurred through the Foreign Ministry.
Dendias also fielded questions about the new Greek frigate Kimon, confirming the vessel is fully ready as a unit but has not yet been integrated into the operational fleet. He acknowledged that communication with the rest of the fleet could be a challenge if deployed immediately, though he said that process could be accelerated in an emergency.
Responding to Turkish media reports suggesting Ankara should deploy its own forces in response to the regional situation, Dendias questioned the logic, pointing out that Hezbollah is geographically much closer to Turkey than to Greece.
