US begins using Greek air base near Athens for ME ops.
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The first big US aircraft began to reach Elefsina Air Base, serving as the home base for the Greek Air Force's 112th Combat Wing.
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Greek marines stand near helicopters during a drill at a military base in central Greece, on February 2020. Army aviation forces from Greece and the US have been marking deepening defense ties between the two countries. (AP)
Since a United States base on the island of Crete is already at full capacity, the US Air Force has begun using Elefsina air base near Athens for operations in the Middle East, according to Greek media on Monday.
According to the Open Broadcaster, the first US aircraft began to reach Elefsina Air Base, serving as the home base for the Greek Air Force's 112th Combat Wing. If the US military authorizes its infrastructure, other Greek air bases, including those on the island of Karpathos, would reportedly be involved as well.
According to the report, the air base in Crete is currently overcrowded with thirty aircrafts, including ten transport planes and eight aerial refueling tankers, in addition to a large number of US marines.
The Pentapostagma news website stated that the first US aircraft to arrive was a C-21 aircraft that landed on Saturday afternoon and went out two hours later. The report believed that the Elefsina airfield would be utilized as a refueling and parking hub for US citizens being evacuated from war zones.
According to the left-wing website 902.gr, locals are against what they see as the conversion of their city into a US military post, and civil organizations and Greek trade unions are getting ready for a protest rally on Wednesday.
It is worth noting that Greece has emerged as a "strategic hub" that expands the US military's presence in the region and strengthens NATO's eastern flank, US State Secretary Antony Blinken said on Tuesday during a visit to Athens.
"One of the new sites supports military transport around the Port of Alexandroupoli, which has become, indeed, a key strategic hub, including bringing in defensive weaponry, trucks, and artillery for U.S. military units that are operating in Eastern and Northern Europe, as well as NATO Allies," Blinken stated during a February meeting with Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias.
As stated in the Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreement between the US and Greece, the US is permitted to establish new military bases on Greek territory after having expanded the term of the agreement from one to five years.
The US was further given access to the northern Alexandroupolis port to facilitate the delivery of weapons to Eastern Europe and Ukraine, which Mitsotakis believes made Greece the US' main partner in the region.
The US was attempting to set up a base at the port of Alexandroupolis, which Greece also rejected a request for.
Read more: Mitsotakis says US will provide Greece with 'free military equipment'
This comes after US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced on Sunday that the United States will deploy a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-ballistic missile defense system, as well as additional Patriot battalions in the Middle East to enhance the security of US forces.
Austin confirmed in a statement that he "activated the deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery as well as additional Patriot battalions to locations throughout the region to increase force protection for U.S. forces."
In addition, the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group will be moved to the Central Command area of responsibility to join the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group, which is currently operating in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, the statement read.
The US defense chief also ordered additional troops to be placed on standby "to increase their readiness and ability to quickly respond as required." However, he did not say how many additional US troops would be deployed to the region.
