UAE to send F-16s to Crete for training with Greek military amid tensions with Turkey

Al-Monitor Staff

A fight plane of the type F-16 (L) of the Israeli Air Force (IAF) starts from the airbase in N√∂rvenich, western Germany, on August 20, 2020, during the first joint German-Israeli military air exercise "Blue Wings 2020". (Photo by SASCHA SCHUERMANN / AFP) (Photo by SASCHA SCHUERMANN/AFP via Getty Images) — A fight plane of the type F-16 (L) of the Israeli Air Force (IAF) starts from the airbase in Nörvenich, western Germany, on Aug. 20, 2020, during the first joint German-Israeli military air exercise "Blue Wings 2020". — SASCHA SCHUERMANN/AFP via Getty Images

The United Arab Emirates is sending four F-16 fighter aircraft for joint training with the Greek military on Crete, an Athens-based daily newspaper reported Friday.

The aircraft will partake in training exercise with Greece’s military over the Eastern Mediterranean amid heightened tensions with Turkey, which has deployed naval vessels to escort a hydrocarbon exploration ship to waters claimed by Greece.

The head of Greece’s Hellenic National Defense staff spoke with his Emirati counterpart, Lt. Gen. Hamad Mohammed Thani Al Rumaithi, on Thursday, Kathimerini reported.

Athens’ Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias also spoke with UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan. A spokesperson for the UAE’s defense ministry was not immediately available for comment.

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UAE to send F-16s to Crete for training with Greek military amid tensions with Turkey

The UAE is the latest country to show support for Greece amid a tense maritime dispute with Turkey

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