On April 24-25, 2026, a series of bilateral agreements were signed in Athens between Greece and France. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and French President Emmanuel Macron confirmed and expanded the common will of the two countries for mutual support. The “Greece-France-Alliance 2.0” is now a fact.

The agreements signed in detail:

Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership
Agreement between the Government of the Hellenic Republic and the Government of the French Republic for the renewal of the strategic partnership for cooperation in defense and security between Greece and France.
Roadmap for the strengthening of cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic and the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs of the French Republic.
Joint Declaration of Intent between the Ministry of Education of the Hellenic Republic and the Ministry of Education of the French Republic for the further strengthening of bilateral cooperation in matters of vocational education, training and lifelong learning.
Action Plan for the strengthening of cooperation in the fields of Higher Education and scientific research between the Hellenic Republic and the French Republic 2026-2030.
Joint Declaration of Intent for the establishment of cooperation in the field of nuclear technology between the Ministry of Development of the Hellenic Republic and the Ministry of Economy, Finance and Industry, Energy and Digital Sovereignty of the French Republic.
Agreement for the Establishment of an Intergovernmental Organization for the Development and Exploitation of Digital Ocean Systems and IT Services.
Declaration of Intent for Cooperation in Defense Research and Development and Innovation of Defense and Military Technologies and Systems.
Framework Agreement for the Ongoing Support of MICA IR/RF Missiles and 1st Executive Agreement of 2026 between the Ministry of Defense of the Hellenic Republic and the company MBDA France.

At first, it is necessary to point out the extremely critical timing for Greece and Europe. The signing of the nine agreements took place in the midst of world-historic war events and international turmoil. The Mitsotakis-Macron meeting joins the long list of cherished Greek-French partnerships, but goes one step further. It shows the way for the substantial activation of the common defense and security policy that the member states of the European Union must follow, if they want to be an important factor and not an observer of international developments and a tailwind of the extreme international competition.

The latest American “bell” about the need to increase spending on European defense and security, independently of NATO, seems to have begun to find receptive ears. Of course, Greece and France are two countries that traditionally invest in their defense for different reasons each one, in contrast to other countries that until recently had rested on minimal defense spending due to high transatlantic protection. Given the definitive end of the era of “carelessness”, the renewal of the Greek-French alliance may find other imitators in Europe, while Russia, China and the eternally “deliberately neutral” Turkey play their own geopolitical games against real European interests.

Thefefore, at the heart of the Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between Greece and France is the renewal of the defense cooperation agreement between the two states. A crucial point of this is the provision for its tacit renewal after five years, so that it does not require a re-signing, unless of course one of the two parties withdraws and terminates the agreement. It is obvious that this arrangement creates a time horizon that goes beyond the narrow limits of the electoral cycles in the two countries, politically and strategically committing their respective political leaderships to close cooperation and mutual defense support, if required. Thus, the timeless friendship and cooperation of Athens and Paris is confirmed, a product of the historical cultural ties between Greeks and French peoples, which are based on the common values ​​of Democracy, Freedom, the Rule of Law and the protection of the unified European cultural heritage.

In this context, it should not be overlooked that the above defense agreement constitutes a tangible example of the application of Article 42 paragraph 7 of the Treaty on European Union, which provides that: “If a Member State is the victim of an armed attack on its territory, the other Member States shall provide it with assistance and assistance by all the means at their disposal, in accordance with Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations. This shall not affect the specific nature of the security and defense policy of certain Member States.”

This article constitutes a very important protection of the Member States of European Union against third-party threats and strengthens them even more than Article 5 of the NATO Treaty, which is a collective defense clause stipulating that an armed attack against one ally is considered an attack against all and obliges members to provide assistance, including the use of armed force, to restore security. However, this clause does not necessarily imply an automatic declaration of war by all members, but a coordinated response that each state deems appropriate and which can be either military or diplomatic. To date, this article has only been activated once, after the Al Qaeda attack on the Twin Towers in New York on September 11, 2001.

On the contrary, Article 42.7 of the Treaty on European Union had been almost forgotten until today. The conflicting interests of many European states, the absence of war on European soil until the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 (ed. a continuation of the 2014 Russian attack on Crimea) and the NATO “security umbrella” had put any discussion of common defense and armaments off the agenda. However, the recent European Union air operations “IRINI”, “ASPIDES”, “AGENOR”, “ATALANTA”, culminating in the Greek and European (French-led) armada in Cyprus after the recent Hezbollah attacks on Akrotiri, testify to the truth of the matter: Europe needs common defense yesterday!

At this point, one can recall the equally important provision of Articles 42.6 and 46.1 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) regarding Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) in the field of defense, to which I briefly referred in one of my latest articles in the Greek online newspaper Hellas Journal (10/04/2026). According to them, if some Member States wish so, they can proceed to military and armaments cooperation, without the participation of all the rest Member States of the Union being mandatory.

The provision for the exchange of know-how in the field of defense innovation also stands out. This is a field in which French cutting-edge aeronautical technology can find a direct equivalent in the Greek -already tested in the Red Sea- effectiveness of anti-drone pioneering electronic warfare systems.

Another key element is the reference to the EU’s industrial sovereignty, promoting the principle of European preference in all relevant future European instruments and in particular in the European Competitiveness Fund of the next multiannual financial framework 2028-20234. The previous set some important provisions in view of the ReArm Europe Plan/Readiness 2030 program.

Moreover, the Greek-French agreements on the economy, energy, artificial intelligence, culture and the protection of young people from addiction to social networks are a logical consequence of the long-standing friendship and cooperation between the two countries in a number of areas.

In conclusion, politically speaking, the internal political situation in both countries does not go unnoticed.

In France, President Macron is going through the last months of his second and final term in office. The fact of the long-term foresight included in the treaty he signed with Kyriakos Mitsotakis underlines his intention to leave a legacy with a double aspect.

On the one hand, the purpose is to project the stable, geostrategic and economic footprint of his country in Europe against an equally stable and long-standing friend and partner like Greece.

On the other hand, Macron’s deal aims to serve as a signpost for future European leaders. In addition, it should not be forgotten that Macron, regardless of the internal political problems he has faced in his country, has always been a classic Europeanist and a friend of Greece, too. During the last fifteen years he never hesitated to speak out loud about the serious European problems and the need for unified responses, while other powerful countries, like Germany, saw things narrowly, while laying the foundations for Europe’s subversive energy dependence on Russia.

In Greece, the country is heading towards elections with a horizon that is quite cloudy due to the difficult international environment, but also quite uncertain regarding domestic political conditions. In this context, Kyriakos Mitsotakis took the initiative, seeking to see the “big picture” of the region and geography: Greece does not have unlimited options in the difficult region in which it is located. Few of its partners can turn into allies in critical circumstances and even fewer can be considered as true friends in difficult times. The USA, Israel and France are three countries that fulfill all three of these characteristics.

Finally, despite reasonable internal disagreements and disputes, it is good that all of the above is understood by as many Greeks as possible, regardless of any prime minister or government and, above all, regardless of the internal micro-political situation.

It is a condition of national survival and collective prosperity.

George Theodoridis was born and resides in Athens, Greece. He is a political analyst and columnist. He studied Public Administration at Panteion University of Athens and holds a master’s degree in National and EU Administration by the same university. Since 2017 he has been blogging at Huffington Post Greece, sheding light on European and International Affairs. Pieces of his work have also been published on Hellas Journal, a US-based digital newspaper of the Greek and Cypriot Diaspora.