Greece Sends Ukraine Diplomatic Note Over Sea Drone Found on Coast

Greece has sent Ukraine an official diplomatic note regarding a sea drone found on the country’s western coast.

Greek Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lana Zohiou announced this during a press briefing on June 3, according to Ekathimerini.

Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis has already informed EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas about the conclusions reached by the Greek military regarding the device.

The Foreign Minister also discussed the issue with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha during an informal meeting of EU foreign ministers in Limassol, Cyprus.

Fishermen discovered the explosive-laden drone on May 7 off the island of Lefkada in the Ionian Sea and it was subsequently handed over to the military.

It later emerged that Greece is seeking an official apology from Ukraine over the drone.

Greek Defense Minister Nikos Dendias claimed that the surface drone posed a serious threat to shipping and could have caused civilian casualties. According to him, the Greek side has “no doubt” that the drone is Ukrainian.

The Defense Minister also claimed that Athens knows the type of drone, where it was manufactured, and the mission it was performing.

For her part, Lana Zohiou described the appearance of a combat drone off the country’s coast as “a particularly serious incident.” At the same time, she said Athens would first thoroughly review the findings of the investigation conducted by the General Staff of the Armed Forces before taking official measures.

However, the sea drone was not a Ukrainian Magura. UFORSE, the system’s manufacturer, confirmed this to Militarnyi.

Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi noted that there is currently no confirmed evidence that the sea drone discovered in Greece is linked to Ukraine. According to him, as of May 13, the Ukrainian side had no information about the object.

He also emphasized that Ukraine remains fully open to interaction and cooperation with the Greek side to clarify all circumstances of the incident if relevant official requests are received from Athens.