Greece’s Defense Minister Nikolaos Dendias speaks with the media as he arrives for a meeting of EU defense ministers at the European Council building in Brussels, on May 12, 2026. [Virginia Mayo/AP]
Defense Minister Nikos Dendias said he will raise the issue of the unmanned surface vessel of Ukrainian technology found off Lefkada last week with his Ukrainian counterpart at a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council with defence ministers on Tuesday.
Dendias said it is now certain that the Magura-type USV is Ukrainian.
“I will have the opportunity to inform my colleagues, in the presence of the Ukrainian Minister of Defense, about the information regarding the drone we detected in Greece,” he told journalists as he arrived for the meeting. “You understand that the presence of this USV, the drone, affects freedom of navigation and also affects the safety of navigation. This is an extremely serious issue.”
Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov will participate via teleconference at the meeting which will focus on EU military support to Ukraine.
EU defence ministers will also discuss the situation in the Middle East in light of the latest developments of the war in Iran and its effects across the region, as well as implications for EU security and defence.
The sea drone, carrying explosives and indications it had participated in a strike mission, was transferred Saturday to facilities of the Underwater Demolition Command at Skaramagas. Government officials confirmed reports that the drone was intended to target a vessel from Russia’s “shadow fleet” or a ship transporting Russian oil.