The bill of the Ministry of National Defense for Rafale was voted on in principle

The bill of the Ministry of National Defense with the contracts for the acquisition of the 18 Rafale fighters was passed on the Authority with a wider majority in the competent parliamentary committee.

ND, KINAL and Hellenic Solution were in favor of the bill, the KKE voted against while SYRIZA and MERA 25 were reserved to be placed in the Plenary Session.

The majority rapporteur Makarios Lazaridis underlined that today is a great day for the Greek Armed Forces especially for our Air Force as no one said they can disagree that these aircraft are necessary for the strengthening of our country, especially in the current sensitive situation for our national issues. “By acquiring these aircraft,” said the ND MP, “we are fortifying our defense and securing the conditions for peace in the face of a constant and escalating provocation and aggression from the neighboring country.” At the same time, he said that the government proves once again the effectiveness and consistency of words and deeds as since the supply of aircraft was a recognized need in the context of our strategic planning, it ensured that in only four months the Agreement comes to Parliament. , to be ratified. Regarding the contracts, the ND MP noted that in a few months we will have the tangible results of this sanction, with the inclusion of the first six Rafale fighters in the arsenal of our Air Force. Among other things, he stressed that this agreement proves at the same time the depth of the strategic cooperation with France. He noted that this process is completed very quickly without sacrificing integrity and efficiency at any level, with terms that ensure transparency and accountability for the money of Greek taxpayers and called on all parties to vote on the bill because this is the “national required “.

The minority rapporteur, George Tsipras, insisted on criticizing the urgent procedures chosen by the government for the passage of this bill, saying that “we can not continue to move forward, like this. There are some limits “He noted that the confrontation of the Turkish provocation” in no way gives the luxury or the freedom or the margin to the Government, the State, the country, to face in a more relaxed way the issue of the expenses for the Defense , even if they increase. On the contrary, going through such a period should make us even more careful in matters of economy, to maintain the priorities in the choices we make and to be even tighter and tougher in the negotiations “. The SYRIZA MP stated that his party “has been positioned quite clearly, which is why it is in principle positive in the choice made for Rafale, as long as the great priorities that existed in terms of the national He noted that “the agreement we read today, because the other text we have in our hands was quite general, is extremely problematic.” He explained that this agreement “is clearly in the interest of French companies, without guaranteeing anything but The interests of the Greek State are minimal. The final cost is not clear. The financing of the contract is extremely forward-looking and in no way conforms to the conventional material deliveries. It does not ensure the quality delivery of the materials. There are formalities that have not been done before. their appearance in contracts around the issue of what we receive.There is no provision for the participation of the Greek defense industry Chania, in no field and for any of the 18 aircraft “. And he asked for changes in these contracts.

“KINAL spokesman Vassilis Kegeroglou said that his party says” Yes “to the supply of RAFALE, but also demands the absolute guarantee of public interest and cooperation with the Greek Defense Industry, private and state.” RAFALE. that can change the data in the wider business area of ​​interest of our Air Force, the Armed Forces and the country in general. A supply and a weapon system that can change the balance as an excellent power multiplier and a player of air superiority in the defense of our country by strengthening the deterrent and repressive power of our Armed Forces. But at the same time, unfortunately, it turns out to be an extremely critical negative factor. He noted the lack of ambitious planning, something that was not done by the previous one, nor is it done by this government as well. He noted, among other things, that in this agreement there are gaps in relation to the absolute safeguarding of the public interest and national defense industry private and state, there is no provision for industrial returns on either production or maintenance. A process that would enable the support and consolidation of our country’s defense industry.

KKE spokesman Nikos Papanastasis said that his party disagrees and will vote against the bill because this option to strengthen our ED is part of NATO that wants this supply of RAFALE aircraft and has put its stamp on it. , has set its standards, has intervened in the standardization, as it intervenes in every decision concerning our Armed Forces. This agreement, said the KKE MP, is not cut off from the geopolitical developments that are happening in our region. Especially for the Rafale market, he stressed that we now have a lot of experience in what it means to hunt for weapons. It is a process without end and beginning. The one that comes out is the munitions industry and NATO’s “wolf alliance”.

The special speaker of the Hellenic Solution, George Mylonakis, focused their criticism on the lack of our defense industry, saying that for the situation that has occurred, “I am ashamed and sorry” as “the EAS have been devalued. ELVO does not produce anything “. Regarding the acquisition of Rafale, he said that we were late and the government should have brought the bill before Christmas. Hellenic Solution, told you from the first moment that RAFALE is the most suitable for the Greek space, the money that is spent for both the new and the used ones somewhere nearby must be. It is an aircraft I think a “lethal” war machine. It is perfectly connected to the space we have here in the Aegean and I think that at the moment, this aircraft will make a big difference. The fate of these 18 aircraft will be the terror and fear of the Turks. “

MEPA25 Special Rapporteur Sofia Sakorafa, for her part, said that “no one can disagree with the country’s defense reinforcement, especially today, when the country is being dragged into a negotiation with its theoretical neighbor and, in fact, accepted, and on a referee, who uses Turkey as a vehicle in his geopolitical planning. And we would also be in favor of strengthening the country based on a plan and strategy. ” He stressed that “patriotism is neither bargained nor exhausted in the commercial aspects of the political agenda. In the history of our country’s armaments, we find that our choices did not stem from our objective national needs. “Unfortunately, to a large extent they are also determined by the factor of balances between our famous allies.” He added that “the multiplicity of our equipment could be an advantage, if it was the result of national planning and if it was based solely on defense criteria. However, in the Greek example, the multiplicity arose from the conjunctural dependencies of our country. It is a result of the lack of national planning and for this reason, it works as a disadvantage “We have said the MP of MERA 25” very serious concerns about the contracts under discussion and voting because this agreement conflicts with both the existing legislation on armaments and with the practice that is followed in our country and we declare a reservation for our final attitude, which will clearly be influenced by the content of the classified as soon as we manage to gain knowledge of them “