The European Union is reportedly planning to set up a spy academy on Greek territory, according to Politico magazine, which reports the project is among the 17 included on the agenda of a meeting in Brussels today and tomorrow.

From Politico.eu:

The defense ministers of 25 EU member countries are poised to agree today on a joint EU intelligence school, along with 16 other new projects, as part of their military pact.

The new projects, to be signed off by the defense ministers of all the EU’s member countries except Denmark, Malta and the United Kingdom under the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) pact, range from improving training and facilities to boosting maritime operations and air systems, according to a draft document seen by POLITICO.

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The establishment of a joint EU spy school would be a big step forward for the bloc’s intelligence community. Until recently, a significant deepening of intelligence cooperation in the Union was blocked by the U.K., which viewed it as unwelcome competition to the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, made up of the United States, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Britain. With Brexit approaching, London no longer stands in the way.

However, eyebrows will be raised by the proposal to have Greece lead the academy, with help from Cyprus, meaning two of the EU’s members with the closest ties to Moscow would run the project.

more at politico.eu