The Alternate Minister of National Defence, Dimitris Vitsas, accompanied by the Chief of HAGS, Lieutenant General Alkiviadis Stefanis, and the MoD Special Secretary, Kalliopi Papaleonida, attended today Friday, this 20th day of October of 2017, the oath-taking ceremony of first-year students in the Non-Commissioned Officers’ (NCO) School in Trikala.
The Alternate Minister of National Defence in his address pointed out the fact that the attendance at the Non-Commissioned Officers’ School becomes three years in length and the education provided is being upgraded. He congratulated the students for their choice and wished them every success in the completion of their studies and all the best on their way to the Armed Forces.
Responding to questions put by journalists on the upgrading of F-16, he noted that “the Armed Forces have been calling for many years for the need to upgrade the biggest part of the fighters’ fleet and now this Government makes this a reality”. And he added: “When we talk about the need for foreign and domestic investments, we should talk at the same time about conditions of safety and sovereignty. And at the same time, we should demand – being the last but also the first European country in an unstable area, which is both stable and an instrument of peace – assistance, not in the sense of begging but in the sense that just as we help Europe, Europe should also stand on the side of Greece”.
Responding to a question on the MoD’s bill and the regulations on unionization in the Armed Forces, we mentioned that this issue will be brought before the Plenary Session of the Parliament, along with the article on unionization, with certain amendments, based on discussions already made. He said “It is important that officers themselves realize the substance and the severity of the said article, because they are going to be the ones who will take advantage of it one way or another. They may take advantage of it for beneficial reasons for the Armed Forces and always bearing in mind that the operational need is above all; however, they may also destroy it”.
