Pakistan's tall claims that it downed six Indian jets are now being used by its ally Turkey's conservative media to counter its arch-foe in the region, Greece. India has not confirmed the downing of its fighter jets, including French-made Rafale.
A report by TR Haber suggests that Athens has expressed concern over the superiority and capability of the jet after claims that Rafale was downed by Pakistan's Chinese-made JF-17. Greece has acquired 24 Rafale jets from France —18 delivered between 2021 and 2023, with the final six completed by 31 December 2024, at Tanagra Air Base.
"Greece, which aims to establish air superiority over Ankara with Rafales, became concerned after the developments. Questioning the performance of the Rafales could lead Greece to reconsider its defence strategy," Turkish media TR Haber wrote. The publication claimed the Greek media reports suggested this, though it didn't mention its sources. It further added that Ankara's focus on domestic production and rapid increase in defence capacity are causing unease in Greece.
The report further added that New Delhi has openly expressed its dissatisfaction with France on Rafale's performance. However, France argues that the problems are due to human error and poor maintenance, the report added without quoting any source.
It said Dassault Aviation had requested a technical audit of the Rafale fleet but India rejected it. France's refusal to share the source codes of the aircraft further deepened the crisis and India believes Paris was trying to cover up production-related problems, the report bizarrely claimed.
However, some sources in Greece believe the current crisis is a perfect opportunity for the country to assess the capability of Rafael, the report added.
The report comes days after Turkish media expressed concern that India and Greece could be ramping up defence ties. A section of Turkish media has raised alarm about "India's revenge move", which is New Delhi's plan to step up cooperation with Turkey's arch nemesis Greece.
Recently, a report appeared in the Greek newspaper Ekathimerini that said India was "exploring strategic investments in Greece, targeting defence industries, ports, tourism, and potential labour agreements." This includes investing in Greece's defence sector, particularly the Hellenic Aerospace Industry (EAB) and Hellenic Defense Systems (EAS).