ATHENS [MENL] -- Greece and Russia have signed a memorandum for defense cooperation.
Officials said the agreement would pave the way for negotiations for joint projects as well as Russian arms sales to Athens. The accord was signed over the weekend during the visit to Greece by Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov.
Ivanov, who met Greek Defense Minister Yiannos Papantoniou, said the accord calls for military cooperation and meetings over the next year. He said that since 1999 the value of defense cooperation between Greece and Russia has exceeded $1 billion and that Athens is Moscow's third biggest customer.
China and India are Russia's prime defense clients. The Russian defense minister urged Greece to promote the S-300 system in any European Union effort to establish a missile defense shield. Greece is the only NATO ally with the S-300.