Representing the Prime Minister and the Government, the Minister of National Defence Mr. Panos Panagiotopoulos attended today the celebration of the Patron Saint of the Artillery Corps Saint Barbara, at the Artillery School in Nea Peramos, Attica.
The celebration was also attended by the Deputy Minister of National Defence Mr. Panaghiotis Karambelas, the member of the Hellenic Parliament, Secretary of the ‘Nea Demokratia’ party’s Parliamentary Group and MP in Attica Electoral District Mr. Athanassios Bouras, the member of the official opposition, MP in Attica Electoral District with the ‘Coalition of the Radical Left’ party Mr. Alexis Mitropoulos, the MP of the ‘Golden Dawn’ party and State MP Christos Pappas, the member of the ‘Demokratic Left’ party and MP in Attica Electoral District Mr. Vassilios Oikonomou, the Chief of the Hellenic National Defence General Staff General Michail Kostarakos, the Chief of the Hellenic Air Force General Staff Lieutenant General (AF) Antonios Tsantirakis, the Chief of the Hellenic Navy General Staff Vice Admiral Kosmas Christidis, the Chief of the Hellenic Army General Staff Lieutenant General Konstantinos Gkinis, the Deputy Chief of the Hellenic National Defence General Staff Vice Admiral Evangelos Apostolakis, the Commander of Air Support Command Lieutenant General Christos Vaitsis, the Mayor of Megara Mr. Ioannis Marinakis, the delegate of the Bishop of Megara and Salamis, senior cadres of the Armed Forces and Security Corps, retired Armed Forces Officers and foreign Embassies’ Attachés.
After the ceremony, Mr. Panagiotopoulos made the following address:
“Ladies and Gentlemen,
Today we celebrate a double feast; an Orthodox feast of the Great Martyr Saint Barbara and the Day of our glorious Artillery Corps. A Corps that, since the formation of the Hellenic Armed Forces until nowadays, traditionally combines bravery, courage, scientism, mind, fighting spirit and morale.
All these characteristics together that, through the course of the decades, have promoted this Corps -among the other competent Hellenic Armed Forces Corps- to a determinant component of the Hellenic Armed Forces.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I usually say that the Hellenic Armed Forces’ mission is not to make war but to preserve peace. Our traditional and everyday struggle at the Ministry of National Defence is to this end.
However, in order for us to be able to preserve peace, we need to have great deterrent capability, our force must be visible and given, so that Greece will inspire respect and appreciation to friends and foes, to good and bad neighbours and that they will consider, reconsider and finally keep from any move, or even thought, of offending our national integrity, independence, and our country’s national sovereignty.
From the bottom of my heart I would like to emphasize the Artillery Corps’ decisive contribution to our Nation’s and our country’s struggles; its influential involvement to the pages of glory and honour written by the Hellenic Armed Forces.
Today we live in a world characterised by dangers, changeability and unstableness. Nothing can be considered given and self-evident.
If we wish our people to go through with the gigantic effort, so that the country will be saved and find its feet after the financial war that was imposed on it by the markets, and the sacrifices made by the Hellenic people will produce results, a prerequisite is absolutely necessary: We must have stability and security; we must have ensured and guaranteed our country’s independence, sovereignty and integrity.
This is the great offer made by the Hellenic Armed Forces to Greece, our Nation and our people.
Yet this is not enough. The Armed forces that are a special part of the Hellenic people and come from the working classes and the middle class, just like the rest of the Hellenic people experiencing this financial war, have assumed a great burden on their shoulders and a mission they must carry out in the best possible way, disconnecting – as the Chief of the Hellenic Army General Staff correctly said in his Order of the Day, read by the Commander of the School – any everyday problems and justified complaints from their devotion to their mission and duty.
As Greeks, we are proud of having these Armed Forces. We are proud of their efficiency, their high operational readiness, their spirit, their morale, their dedication to the country, the Nation, the Constitution and their duty.
Many happy returns to our Artillery Corps; many happy returns to our Forces and to everyone. With your blessings, Reverend and Holy Fathers, may God give guidance to all of us, to be useful to our country during these critical circumstance.
Thank you very much”.
