Multinational military exercise Medusa 15/2026 begins in the Eastern Mediterranean

The multinational joint military exercise "Medusa 15/2026" commenced on Thursday, September 10, 2026, in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Cretan Sea. The drills involve naval, air, and ground forces from Greece, Cyprus, Egypt, France, and Italy. Operations are scheduled to continue until September 19, focusing on modern combat scenarios designed to address contemporary security threats in the region.

Activities are taking place in a maritime zone south and east of Crete, south of Karpathos, and extending towards western Rhodes. Greece has issued a NAVTEX to reserve the area for these maneuvers. The exercise follows a trilateral summit between Greece, Cyprus, and Egypt held at El Alamein just two days prior, where leaders reaffirmed their commitment to regional stability. Analysts note that the exercise area overlaps with zones involved in Turkish maritime claims linked to the Turkey-Libya memorandum, signaling a strategic focus on regional power projection and cooperative defense efforts.