Greece intensified its diplomatic pressure on Ukraine this Wednesday following the discovery of a suspected Ukrainian kamikaze drone off the coast of Lefkada last week. Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis issued a stern warning, asserting that Greece will not tolerate the transformation of the Mediterranean into a “theater of military operations.”
Speaking in Athens alongside Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić-Radman, Gerapetritis emphasized Greece’s commitment to ensuring the Mediterranean remains a “sea of peace.” He characterized the incident as a symptom of a destabilizing trend, noting that the European Union faces unprecedented security threats after four years of regional conflict. “The greatest challenge,” Gerapetritis noted, “is preventing the spread of the wars troubling our neighborhood.”
Is the Russia-Ukraine war spilling to the Med?
The discovery of the explosive-laden vessel on the Ionian island has alarmed Greek officials, who view it as evidence that the risks of the Russia-Ukraine war are spilling far beyond the Black Sea. Athens maintains that the drone was likely deployed in Greek territorial waters in a botched attempt to strike a Russian vessel transiting the Mediterranean.
While the Hellenic National Defense General Staff conducts a forensic analysis at the Skaramagas naval facilities, preliminary findings have identified the craft as a “Mamai-type” kamikaze drone—a model frequently utilized by Ukrainian forces. Specialists from the Underwater Demolition Command have already neutralized the device’s explosives and are currently extracting mission data to determine its launch point.
Diplomatic friction and Kyiv’s silence
The incident has sparked a rare diplomatic rift between Athens and Kyiv. Despite public inquiries from Defense Minister Nikos Dendias and government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis, Ukrainian officials have remained tight-lipped:
Denials: Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Heorhii Tykhyi stated Kyiv has no record of the vessel.
Silence at the EU Level: During a high-level EU defense videoconference on Tuesday, Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov declined to comment when specifically questioned by his Greek counterpart.
Athens has briefed its NATO and EU allies on the situation, highlighting the grave dangers of the conflict drifting into the Aegean or Mediterranean seas. Beyond the immediate security threat, Greek authorities are particularly wary of the economic and environmental fallout that an accidental or intentional strike near its coastline could trigger, especially regarding the high volume of commercial tanker traffic in the region.
Greece continues to seek a rapid conclusion to the technical inquiry as it weighs its next diplomatic steps toward Kyiv.
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