ATHENS – The Greek Armed Forces carried out joint training exercises with the armed forces of France and UK on 22-26 November, 2022.

As announced on Tuesday by the Hellenic National Defence General Staff (HNDGS), in the context of the operation “Antares” by the Strike Force on board the aircraft carrier Charles De Gaulles in the Mediterranean Sea, French special forces troops carried out a parachute jump from an aircraft onto the Charles De Gaulles and later went up in a helicopter and rappelled down a rope onto the Hellenic Navy frigate “Kanaris”.

Additionally, members of the Special Forces/Special Operations Forces of the HNDGS and of the UK Special Forces cooperated in a re-enaction of the operation to destroy the Gorgopotamos bridge, which took place on 25 November 1942.

The joint training exercise under the code name “Harling Drop” included a 50-km walk in the Fthiotida mountain range, along the route that was used during the “Harling” expedition to send Greek and British commandos to Gorgopotamos in WWII.

The joint training exercises, an announcement said, contributed to advancing the level of operational readiness, the fighting capability and interoperability and cooperation among the participants in a bilateral and alliance framework.