Alexandros Tarkas: The United States is asking for more facilitations – Why is Greece not demanding American guarantees?

Negotiations for a second revision of the Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreement (MDCA) are being conducted by Athens and Washington with the aim of increasing the – impressively large – presence of US military missions in the facilities of all three branches of the Greek Armed Forces throughout the country.

Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias used the very succinct phrase “we have started talks on the new MDCA” in Parliament on Sunday, without clarifying the real dimensions of the dialogue. The talks are initiated by the US side, seeking to curb Russian and Chinese influence in the Eastern Mediterranean and address threats in the wider region over the next years.

On the contrary, the Greek government was hesitant until recently, although US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had raised the issue of the revision of the Greek-American Military Agreement (MDCA) with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis during their talks in Souda on September 29 this year. The prime minister raised the issue of financing $ 50,000,000 worth of projects in Souda in September alone, which had been pending in Congress for 10 months (due to an internal transfer of funds for other needs) and was approved only last Thursday.

Kyriakos Mitsotakis did not take advantage of the opportunity offered to him by Mike Pompeo to open a larger round of negotiations, demanding specific political and military trade-offs that would strengthen Greece vis-a-vis Turkey. Because, of course, the US bases are not directed against a NATO ally, nor are the theories about the rapid transfer of the activities of the Incirlik base to Greece valid. It is obvious that the Turkish side, in case of a Greek-Turkish conflict, will never target bases in Greece where US forces are stationed or exercise.

Kyriakos Mitsotakis last year chose the simple (first) revision of the annex of the Greek-American military agreement (MDCA) with the extension of American rights of use, beyond Souda, also in Stefanovikeio, Magnesia, Marathi, Chania, and in the port of Alexandroupolis. And this, while he could have followed the path of total renegotiation.

Athens was inactive

The US embassy had asked in August and September 2019 questions about the number and nature of the exchanges that would be requested. Foreign Ministry officials had unofficially replied that the government would insist – at the very least – on providing material and written guarantees for Greece’s national security.

It would be, after all, nothing more than a copy of the practice of the initial signing of the Greek-American Military Agreement (MDCA) in July 1990, with the list of defense assistance (free funding from the FMS programs, F-4E aircraft, A-7, P3A, and destroyers). The list included letters exchanged between then-Foreign Minister Antonis Samaras and then-Ambassador Michael Sotirhos and incorporated into the agreement. A little later, a very important letter from President George W. Bush to his counterpart Kostas Karamanlis on the guarantee of Greek national security had followed.

The practice of 1990 was rejected by a decision of the PM’s office in 2019 and it is characteristic that, due to this year’s Greek inaction, the first step of the dialogue was taken again by the American embassy, ​​under Geoffrey Pyatt. Deputy Chief of Mission David Berger and his successor, Capt. Timothy Ketter, have been in talks with the Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense, respectively, to begin negotiations with the outgoing Trump administration and the administration.

The military leadership is on standby

Coincidentally, former US Ambassador to Athens (2010-2013) Daniel Smith is the State Department’s liaison with newly elected Joe Biden’s diplomatic team during the current transition period in Washington. In this context, despite the procrastination on the part of Greece, a special negotiating team was finally formed with representatives of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and National Defense, and of the National Armed Forces Staff GEETHA.

The military leadership showed the greatest readiness of all. Following instructions from the Chief of General Staff, General Konstantinos Floros, officials are working on a long list of requests (infrastructure, modern weapons systems, etc.) to be submitted to the US Embassy in exchange for accepting its own large list for more bases.

However, there is still no guidance from the government leadership, especially the Diplomatic Service, on the political guarantees that will be sought. The situation is ideal and the time limits are sufficient so that on the one hand the guarantees are large and long-term, and on the other hand to seek the signing of an entirely new Greek-American military agreement (MDCA) instead of the partial revision of its annex.