On the sidelines of Defence Exhibition Athens (DEFEA) which concluded this past Thursday, MBDA inaugurated a new permanent office in Athens, strengthening the company’s presence in Greece and demonstrating its commitment to supporting the Hellenic Armed Forces.

Eric Béranger, CEO of MBDA, stated: “The inauguration of our Athens office is a cornerstone in our special relationship with Greece. We are proud to have supported the Hellenic Armed Forces for over 50 years and to have contributed to a strategic and close partnership with Greece, based on strong mutual trust.”

“Through this permanent presence of MBDA in Athens, we intend to increase our local investments in Greece and to partner with Greek institutions to continue to deliver key sovereign capabilities that provide the best solutions to meet the requirements of the Hellenic Armed Forces customer,” he added.

Greece was MBDA’s first customer for the Exocet missile in 1968, and the company has worked with the country for over 50 years. Greece has recently reaffirmed this long-standing relationship with contracts for weapon packages for the Rafale fighter aircraft and its Defence and Intervention Frigates of the Hellenic Navy (FDI HN).

MBDA’s new office in Athens will be a springboard for even closer co-operation. Developing the local participation of Greek national companies and institutions in the delivery of MBDA’s contracts in Greece and their follow-on phases.

A first contract was signed in 2021 for the supply of a Rafale weapon systems package for 18 aircraft, with a second weapon package signed in 2022 for a further six Rafale. On the same day in 2022, a third contract was signed for a state-of-the-art weapon package from MBDA to equip three new Defence and Intervention Frigates (FDI HN).

MBDA is a unique multi-national European group, a world-leader in the field of complex weapon systems, playing a key role in keeping nations safe. Created in the spirit of international co-operation, MBDA and its more than 14,000 employees work together to support the national sovereignty of France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK, and other allied countries worldwide. As an accelerator for innovation, MBDA is the only European group capable of designing and manufacturing complex weapons to meet the full range of current and future operational requirements of the three armed forces (land, sea and air).

MBDA is owned by Airbus (37.5%), BAE Systems (37.5%) and Leonardo (25%).