The Deputy Minister of National Defence, Mr. Nikolaos Hardalias, participated today in the “Seoul Defense Dialogue 2022” International Conference of Deputy Ministers of National Defence.

The said Conference was attended by Alternate and Deputy Ministers of National Defence, senior officials and security policy acclaimed experts, and focused on the conduct of a multilateral and constructive dialogue on international peace, security, and stability.

During the work of the International Conference, the Deputy Minister of National Defence met with the Deputy Minister of Defence of the Republic of Korea, Mr. Tae-keun Heo, the Australian Government Assistant Secretary Global Interests, Mr. Tom Menadue, the Associate Deputy Minister of National Defence of Canada, Ms. Stefanie Beck, the Deputy Minister for Defence of the Republic of Ghana, Mr. Kofi Amankwa-Manu, the Defence Ministry Permanent Secretary of Estonia, Mr. Kusti Salm, the Commander of the United Nations Command/ Combined Forces Command of the United States Forces, Korea, General Paul J. LaCamera, and the Deputy Commander of the United Nations Command in the Republic of Korea, Lieutenant General Andrew Harrison.

In the context of the Conference, the Deputy Minister of National Defence met with the Deputy Minister of Defence for Strategic Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Mr. Ahmed Ali Aseeri. Within a cordial environment, both Deputy Ministers confirmed the exceptional relations in place between the two countries, and agreed to intensify their efforts to enhance the bilateral military cooperation, which was ratified in July 2022 whereby the signing of the Agreement on Military Cooperation between Greece – Saudi Arabia, aiming for regional stability and security.

Furthermore, Mr. Hardalias had a bilateral meeting with his South Korean counterpart, Mr. Beom Chul Shin. Both Deputy Ministers stressed the strong friendly ties currently in place between their countries and confirmed the significance of the Memorandum of Understanding, which was signed yesterday between the Ministry of National Defence and the Republic of Korea Defense Acquisition Program Administration, highlighting that the said Memorandum constitutes an unparalleled opportunity to further enhance the defence cooperation in areas of mutual interest and greatly contributes to the establishment of joint understanding and strategic thinking.

During his bilateral meetings, the Deputy Minister of National Defence was accompanied by the Greek Ambassador in Korea, Ms. Ekaterini Loupas.