NICOSIA, March 3 (Reuters) – France plans to send anti-missile and anti-drone systems to Cyprus after a British air base on the island was attacked by drones, the semi-official Cyprus News Agency (CNA) said on Tuesday.
France would send anti-missile and anti-drone systems, as well as a frigate, CNA reported. It said French President Emmanuel Macron communicated the intention to Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides early on Tuesday.
A Cypriot government source, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the report. The French defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The reported French aid to the island follows Greece’s offer of assistance hours after RAF Akrotiri, a British sovereign base, was targeted in two separate drone incidents on Monday.
In the first instance an Iranian-made Shahed drone crashed into the runway of the base, causing limited damage. Hours later two other drones were intercepted.
Senior Cypriot officials say the attack was carried out by an Iranian Shahed drone most likely fired by Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah from Lebanon. The officials have stressed that the base – considered sovereign British territory – rather than Cyprus, was the target.
Britain said on Sunday that it had accepted a U.S. request to use its military bases for “defensive” strikes against Iran, a day after the launch of a U.S. and Israeli military campaign against Iran, which triggered Iranian retaliation. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer later said Britain’s bases on Cyprus were not being used by U.S. bombers.
Cyprus has asked Britain that the bases only be used for humanitarian purposes.
Greece on Monday dispatched four F-16 fighter jets to the island. Two frigates, one equipped with its anti-drone Centauros jamming system, were also sailing to Cyprus.
Centauros, which has been successfully deployed against Houthi rebels attacking shipping lanes off Yemen, has the capability of detecting and incapacitating low-flying drones, such as the one which crashed into RAF Akrotiri and evaded radars, Cypriot defence sources said.
(Writing by Michele Kambas; Editing by David Goodman, Aidan Lewis)
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