Besides the two new ships, Greece's foreign affairs and defence council has approved the modernisation of the country's existing German-made ThyssenKrupp MEKO frigates and an update to the armed forces' encryption software, Mitsotakis added. The purchases have to be rubber-stamped by the Greek parliament, where the conservative prime minister's New Democracy party enjoys an absolute majority. In response to the security woes besetting the Middle East, across the Mediterranean from Greece, Athens has sought to bolster its armed forces. Historically a significant client of both US and European arms manufacturers, Greece is one of four NATO countries to devote more than three percent of GDP to defence, behind Poland, Estonia and Latvia. (Bssnews)