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George sarris
We are used to hearing in the media how Kastelorizo Due to its geographical location, it is daily at the “mercy of the Turks”. This may have been partially true at some point. Today, however, after the complete adjustment in the way of guarding the island complex of Megisti, only at the mercy of the neighboring country it cannot be said that it is.
«Today Kastelorizo is considered one of the best-guarded islands in the country. If we take into account its size and population, it may be the best-kept island in the entire territory.He reveals to newsbeast.gr senior officials of the Ministry of National Defense who are very aware of what is happening in the area.
Its strategic importance
What people do not know is that during the recent Greek-Turkish crisis in the Aegean, in midsummer, the creation of a new shield to protect the island began gradually, since one of the main scenarios that officials were considering in those days was how he prevented any attack on the island of strategic importance, since for the Turks it is the “thorn” that does not allow them to expand as much as they wanted the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) his.
However, at the same time, the location is based on the Law of the Sea, which gives Athens the right to establish an EEZ that will be in contact with that of the Republic of Cyprus. Without Kastelorizo, the Greek EEZ cannot merge with the Cypriot and Turkey will have its place, so the exceptional importance of these 9,113 square kilometers of land is understood.
The “invisible eye” that scans the area
First, the archipelago is now scanned 24 hours a day by Air Force flight radars that detect anything that navigates the widest area and comes close to Greek territorial waters. These are, as those familiar with the Erieye EMB-145H AEW & C aircraft point out, the Command and Control aerial platforms that now support air and naval operations. Our country has four of these aircraft operated by the 380th Airborne Early Warning and Control System.
At least one of them is permanently located in the southeastern part of Greek territory, flying at an altitude of up to 30,000 feet and moving at a speed of up to 0.75 Mach, exchanging information with the other units. It should be noted that the manufacturer of this platform is Embraer, which also creates the first ministerial aircraft of the Hellenic Republic. The operational capacity of the pilots is such that NATO officials have recently assigned them to manage part of the maritime surveillance in the Libya region. It is understood that their work is assisted by the Air Force fighter jets that appear in a very short time over Kastelorizo to intercept the Turkish approaching the area making overflights.
Cretan reinforcement armor
What many people also do not know is that the Ministry of National Defense, after a series of meetings under the command of the National Defense General Staff, General Konstantinos Floros, has chosen to protect Kastelorizo, strengthening Crete and its eastern part. Namely, Lassithi prefecture, which is the least inhabited of the main island, washed by the sea on all three sides, with the Cretan Sea to the north, the Carpathians to the east and the Libyan Sea to the south.
It is the closest point from Crete to Kastelorizo and, therefore, the fastest to run in case of danger. Part of the fleet is now permanently moored in the area (as well as on Rhodes) to act appropriately if ordered.
The key position of the S-300
We must not forget that in Crete our country has chosen to store tons of ammunition and weapons systems, but also to place the Russian surface-to-air missile set. S-300. Our country maintains two S-300 PMU-1 artillery pieces with 12 launchers and 96 48N6E1 missiles that have a maximum combat radius of 150 kilometers. Located in Crete, these ensembles protect both the Souda air base and other military installations on the island and the wider geographical area even beyond the Dodecanese.
Radar with a range of 350 km
The 64N6E Big Bird long-range radar provides a detailed image of the airspace in a global area with a radius of 350 km, which means that it includes not only Kastelorizo, but also part of the beaches of Asia Minor, such as the port of Antalya. that he sailed each time by the Turkish research vessel Oruc Reis. In Crete, there has also been a permanent presence of Chinook helicopters for some time, so there can be very rapid airlift of forces.
Commands “nest” in invisible places
The catalyst is also the role of Z-MAK, the selected unit of the Armed Forces that “nests” in invisible places of the Megisti archipelago. It makes its presence felt only when an enemy ship approaches close to Greek territorial waters and is considered to be present. Commando with smoke in his face and with advanced weaponry, get on the inflatables and hurry, whenever they are called to do their duty.
According to the Ministry of National Defense, in recent months the Z-MAK frogmen had … enough work. The unit – “ghost”, whose members are known only to its commander and top leaders, was created in 1997, shortly after the crisis in Imia and its main mission is the rapid reaction and the reconquest of rocky islets, islands and islands. , then one understands why some of his men are constantly in the area. With the typical composition of an Amphibious Squad, it consists of three attack battalions, a command battalion and a naval battalion.
Army and outpost at Strongyli
It is worth mentioning the fact that in Round (according to other Stroggili), an extremely rocky island next to Kastelorizo, without tree vegetation, which is the easternmost part of the Greek land, there is permanently a small detachment of the Greek army with a guard post and helipad, while the same is applies to Ro island that the ground is relatively smoother.
Support from the 95th ADTE
Finally, in addition to the local forces, the 95th Superior Command of the National Guard Battalions (ADTE) and the Navy submarines, which undoubtedly gained the impressions of the recent Greek-Turkish crisis, also provide support to the archipelago.
When a few months ago the Turks had launched their helicopters and antisubmarine submarines in case they managed to “pierce” our “Nireus” (S-111) that they believed was in front of Rhodes, suddenly the Navy General Staff emerged majestically in the port Kastelorizo’s principal, doing a little demonstration of his capabilities!
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