On Friday, 05 April 2019, the Minister of National Defence Evangelos Apostolakis attended the Distinguished Visitors’ Day (DVD) of multinational air exercise “INIOCHOS 2019” at Andravida Air Base.

The Minister of National Defence was accompanied by the Chief of Hellenic National Defence General Staff, Lieutenant General (HAF) Christos Christodoulou, the Chief of Hellenic Navy General Staff, Vice Admiral Nikolaos Tsounis HN, the Chief of Hellenic Army General Staff, Lieutenant General Georgios Kambas, and the Chief of Hellenic Air Force General Staff, Lieutenant General (HAF) Georgios Blioumis.

Within the framework of the exercise DVD schedule, the Minister of National Defence and the Chief of Hellenic National Defence General Staff recognised the Hellenic Air Force pilots who were top of their class at the 1st Training Class of NATO’s Tactical Leadership Programme – TLP 2019 and the 1st Joint Class of the Fighter Weapons School, respectively.  

In his address, the Minister stressed, among others, that:

– The Balkans, the Middle East, North Africa, and East Mediterranean are regions of great strategic importance, characterised by a broad spectrum of security challenges.

– Multilateral defence cooperations contribute to the promotion of stability and the effective dealing with common security challenges at international level.

– Greece, as a pillar of stability, plays a key role in the promotion of international defence cooperations and initiatives.

– Exercise “INIOCHOS” enables international realistic operational air training in a joint environment. Thus, the interaction and synergy achieved, in addition to the obvious operational benefits in the area of defence, also contribute to the strengthening of the bonds of cooperation and friendship among the participating states.