France is not involved in the potential sale of Meteor missiles to Türkiye, according to its defense minister, as Ankara plans to add advanced missiles to its inventory as part of plans to buy Eurofighter Typhoon jets.
"Do we have a role in this? The answer is no," Sebastien Lecornu told the National Assembly on Tuesday.
He explained that the Meteor missiles are integrated into the Eurofighter jets that Türkiye is also working to acquire and that they are not selling this to Türkiye.
The Meteor is a European active radar-guided beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM) developed and manufactured by MBDA, owned by Airbus, Britain's BAE Systems and Italy's Leonardo
"We don't have control over British arms exports," Lecornu said. The Eurofighter consortium is made up of the U.K., Germany, Italy and Spain.
The remarks came after reports from Greek media over Athens's reaction and an apparent attempt to prevent Türkiye's planned purchase of the missiles.
Asked about the possible sale’s effects on French-Greek relations, Lecornu added that it was important to "measure the legitimate concern” of Greek public opinion on Türkiye getting the missiles.
"I think we only have diplomacy and persuasion to find a way for everyone to talk to each other, to find a solution at the highest level," he said, adding that he would visit Athens to discuss the issue with his Greek counterpart.
Meteor offers a multishot capability (multiple launches against multiple targets) and can engage highly maneuverable targets such as jet aircraft and small targets such as uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) and cruise missiles in a heavy electronic countermeasures (ECM) environment with a range far over 200 kilometers (124.27 miles).
Türkiye has been in negotiations to acquire up to 40 Eurofighter jets to enhance its air force, and Germany took a step toward clearing the deal, after initially being opposed to it.
Türkiye last year secured a deal to procure 40 F-16 fighter jets and 79 modernization kits for its existing F-16s from the United States after a long-delayed process.
Ankara is now said to be waiting for a price proposal for the Eurofighters after submitting a list outlining its technical needs to Britain's Defense Ministry. The Meteor missiles are reportedly included in the proposed package.
Greece, which has recently stepped up its own military procurements through programs including F-16 fleet modernization and the purchase of French-made Rafale jets equipped with Meteor missiles, strongly opposes the sale to Türkiye.
Both NATO allies but historic foes, the two neighbors have long been at odds over issues, including where their continental shelves start and end, energy resources, migration, flights over the Aegean Sea and the ethnically partitioned island of Cyprus.
Tensions have eased in recent years as the sides agreed to reboot their relations, pledging to keep open communication channels and work on the issues that have kept them apart.
Last month, Greek Defense Minister Nikos Dendias summoned the French ambassador and military attache in Athens to express the country's firm opposition to the Meteor deal.
Separately, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis asked French President Emmanuel Macron about the missile negotiations during a meeting on the sidelines of an EU summit in Brussels earlier this month.
Macron was later reported to have rejected Mitsotakis' request to block the sale, underlining that the deal is outside French jurisdiction.
