With the signing of a Joint Action Plan between Greece, Cyprus, and Israel, as well as a Defense Cooperation Program between Athens and Tel Aviv, the Armed Forces of the three countries of the Southeastern Mediterranean “bid farewell” to 2025, creating new geopolitical and defense conditions at the start of the new year—developments that have increased levels of nervousness in neighboring Turkey. The deepening of military cooperation, which came as the culmination of the Trilateral Summit in Jerusalem on the eve of 2026, constitutes another step—if not a decisive one—in the strategic alliance among the three countries, as well as a springboard for further development of joint military programs, building a solid defensive shield both in terms of armaments and military interaction.

It is not only what was said during the 10th Trilateral Summit of Greece–Cyprus–Israel at the highest level, attended by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and the President of the Republic of Cyprus Nikos Christodoulides—with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pointedly stressing before them that “those who believe they can restore their empire and their dominance over our countries are told that this will not happen,” with Ankara as the obvious recipient—but also the substance of the Trilateral Military Cooperation, which now acquires a new and “institutional basis,” according to well-informed sources.

What is changing

Although military sources hastened to clarify to protothema.gr that the new defense agreement among the three countries does not lead to a “rapid reaction force” or any form of joint brigade, in relevant circles it is more than clear that the status of the Trilateral has been significantly upgraded, entering a new phase in 2026 and acquiring official standing. This qualitative change is also reflected in the texts signed on the eve of the holidays in Nicosia, as the Joint Action Plan (JAP) of Greece–Cyprus–Israel and the Defense Cooperation Program (DCP) of Greece–Israel for 2026 include, among other things:

– The conduct of joint, inter-service exercises.
– Joint training of Special Operations Forces.
– Staff-level meetings.
– Talks on issues of mutual interest.

For the Greek Ministry of Defense, the signing ceremony was accompanied by a reminder from the Hellenic National Defense General Staff that “military cooperation among the three states is further strengthened and their role as pillars of peace, stability, and security in the Eastern Mediterranean region is enhanced,” indirectly but clearly sending messages to Ankara regarding the new balance of power as it takes shape with the arrival of 2026. The same view was also expressed by competent sources on the Cypriot side, who spoke of “another step in deepening military cooperation among the countries” to the Cyprus News Agency (CNA), while clarifying that Nicosia has no intention of provoking Turkey or escalating verbal tension.

The exercises

At the same time, and despite the fact that there is no prospect of creating a joint Cyprus–Greece–Israel brigade, the Minister of Defense of the Republic of Cyprus, Vasilis Palmas, confirmed that joint exercises among Cyprus, Greece, and Israel will take place as part of the activity planning of the General Staff of the National Guard (GEEF) for 2026 “with friendly and allied countries and the organization of bilateral, trilateral, or other forms of exercises.”

As for the content of the joint exercises, they will involve joint training of the three armed forces, education of personnel, joint drills, and activities aimed at improving the capabilities of the three militaries. Regarding scheduling, the Cypriot defense minister announced that Nicosia will develop similar activities with Egypt and Jordan within 2026, referring to the military staffs of the three countries for the exact timing of implementation.

Meanwhile, sources cited by the Times of Israel indicate that the Greek Armed Forces are expected to participate in Israel’s naval exercise Noble Dina in the coming months in the Eastern Mediterranean, inaugurating the new framework of defense cooperation next spring.

International interest and… drones

At the same time, the operational planning and the exact content of the exercises among the three countries have become a focal point of international media attention. Reuters reports that “the military agreement will include joint naval and air exercises and the transfer of know-how from Israel to Greece and Cyprus to address both ‘asymmetric’ and ‘symmetric’ threats,” developments which, it notes, “are being closely monitored by regional rival Turkey.” Meanwhile, information cited by Deutsche Welle speaks of “agreements that include plans for joint exercises and training, as well as the exchange of know-how on modern forms of warfare, such as drones and electronic warfare.”

Five layers

At the same time, joint training and interaction among the armed forces of the three countries dovetail with the armaments programs developed recently by Athens and Nicosia, most notably the procurement of Israeli missile systems. In Athens’ case, the ink has barely dried on parliamentary approval for the purchase of 36 PULS multiple rocket launchers, while Israeli sources speak of talks between the two countries aimed at supplying Athens with medium- and long-range air-defense and anti-ballistic missile systems that would contribute to the construction of the “Achilles Shield.” The latter will have five layers—“five as well: anti-aircraft, anti-missile, anti-drone, anti-ship, and anti-submarine, beneath the sea”—as repeatedly described by Minister of National Defense Nikos Dendias, with Israel being far ahead of many countries in developing the relevant technology.

In the same context, Nicosia has recently proceeded with bilateral agreements with Israel for the acquisition of weapons systems, with the National Guard incorporating the Barak air-defense system—a surface-to-air missile (SAM) system designed to provide defensive coverage against all types of aerial threats—as well as a new surveillance system for the Green Line.

Erdoğan’s New Year threat

These defense procurements did not leave Turkey unmoved. The relevant acquisition by Nicosia was characterized as an immediate threat to the national security of Turkey and the pseudo-state by Yanki Bağcıoğlu, deputy chairman of the Republican People’s Party. However, the launch of the new phase of Greece–Cyprus–Israel military cooperation, announced on the eve of the holidays, significantly fueled the New Year’s message of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who himself took up the baton from his country’s press, which greeted the agreement as an “anti-Turkish front.”

In his lengthy New Year address, the Turkish president focused centrally on his country’s “defense steps,” saying that “we are in a significant leap forward in all areas of defense,” including new domestic defense systems such as tanks, unmanned aerial vehicles, warships, and missiles.

Beyond the new Turkish arsenal and the show of strength through its enumeration, Erdoğan stated outright that “we are closely monitoring the increasing challenges and threats against the interests of our country and the Turkish Cypriot people in the Eastern Mediterranean,” against the backdrop of the Greece–Cyprus–Israel Trilateral. In this light, the Turkish president said in his New Year message that “I would like to emphasize once again that we will never tolerate faits accomplis, theft, or plunder in the ‘Blue Homeland,’” with Daily Sabah stressing afterward that “Turkey has recently denounced an impending alliance between Greece, Israel, and the Greek Cypriot administration.”

The “Wall Street Journal” front

Even more so since, a few hours before the Turkish president’s message, the Wall Street Journal published a front-page article titled “Selling F-35s to Turkey Could Lead to War,” explaining that “its president declares the destruction of Zionist Israel. Advanced American aircraft would make that easier,” at a time when Turkish media are celebrating an alleged change in stance by the White House.

As described by Amit Segal, chief political commentator for Israel’s Channel 12 News, “Turkey embodies everything it accuses Israel of. Psychologists call it projection. When President Erdoğan accuses Israel of encroaching on its neighbors’ territories in an effort to establish Greater Israel, he reflects his own desire to revive the Ottoman Empire, which once ruled those same regions,” concluding that “it would be a mistake to arm an increasingly aggressive and Islamist Turkey—which over time could displace Iran as the most threatening country in the region—with far more advanced American weapons.”