The number of contract soldiers eligible for promotion to contract non-commissioned officer (NCO) positions will increase from the originally announced 250 to 400, Defence Minister Vasilis Palmas announced on Friday.

Citing growing personnel needs within the National Guard and defence programmes linked to the European Union’s Security Action for Europe (Safe) mechanism, he made the announcement while receiving the results of the written examinations for the first group of contract soldiers (Syop) seeking permanent appointment as contract NCOs (Syp) from Education Minister Athena Kyriakidou.

The ceremony, held at the defence ministry, was attended by members of the House defence committee and National Guard chief lieutenant general Emmanuel Theodorou.

Palmas said the decision to increase the number of promotion posts had been taken in consultation with the finance ministry and fell within the defence ministry’s approved budgetary framework.

He said the move was deemed necessary due to the high level of interest shown by contract soldiers in the promotion process, the National Guard’s increasing need for NCO-level personnel, partly as a result of programmes underway through the Safe mechanism, and what he described as the state’s practical recognition of the important contribution made by contract soldiers to the National Guard’s combat capability and operational readiness.

“With the understanding that National Guard personnel constitute the spearhead and cornerstone of the armed forces, I assure you that we will continue making every possible effort to strengthen and support our personnel, address the challenges they face and continuously improve service conditions and the overall operational framework of the armed forces,” he said.

Addressing those who did not achieve a qualifying score, Palmas urged them not to lose confidence, stressing that additional opportunities would become available whenever new permanent positions are announced.

“Today was the first opportunity given to these people, and there will be other opportunities in the future,” he said.

Explaining the decision further, Palmas said that although 250 positions had originally been announced, discussions with the finance ministry had enabled the number to be increased to 400.

The top 400 candidates based on examination scores will now be eligible for permanent appointment, allowing them to serve in the National Guard until the age of 57 with the rank of sergeant and potentially advance to the rank of staff sergeant.

Palmas thanked Education Minister Athena Kyriakidou for the close cooperation between the two ministries in organising and conducting the examinations.

He added that, following a proposal by the defence ministry, parliament had approved increasing the mandatory retirement age for contract soldiers from 42 to 57, while special monthly allowances had been raised from €100 to €150 for all contract soldiers, and from €200 to €250 for those serving in special operations units, commando forces, underwater demolition teams, demining and explosive ordnance disposal units, as well as for nurses and engineering machinery operators.

National Guard chief Theodorou said the entire process had been conducted with full transparency and in close cooperation with the education ministry’s examination service.

He wished the new contract NCOs success in their careers and assured those who were not selected that they remained “the backbone of the National Guard”, adding that efforts to improve their working conditions and career prospects would continue.