The Minister of National Defence Panos Kammenos, accompanied by HAGS Chief Lt General Alkiviadis Stefanis, visited the 4th Special National Guard Battalion in Samos and the its Floatable Assets Company.   

In Samos the Minister witnessed the high morale and the upstandingness of the personnel while he defined the actions for managing the accommodation matters of the members with the immediate construction of Quarters for Officers and NCOs in 2017.  

Then, in the context of Field Exercise “ASTRAPI” ordered to be held 12hrs earlier, he visited Ikaria, where he observed the recapture of the airport by a National Guard unit.

Finally, the Minister of National Defence awarded the National Guards for their operational readiness, their excellence in shooting practice, and their overall contribution to the Armed Forces.

The Minister of National Defence in his address to the National Guards stated the following:

“ On behalf of the political and the military leadership I would like to congratulate you all, because in less than 24 hrs when Field Exercise “ASTRAPI” was ordered, you lived up to the expectations of the Hellenic Army General Staff for the conduct of an extra-ordinary exercise, concerning the recapture of the Agios Kyrikos airport.

Allow me to congratulate you on your professionalism, as well as your high morale. From the island of Ikaria and all the Aegean Islands  let’s convey the message that the Armed Forces of the country, the Officers , NCOs, Soldiers and National Guards – who are honoured this year since 2017 has been declared National Guards Year – are ready and alert to serve the country.

We are proud of you, as are all Greeks. The defence of the country is very strong because the best and more powerful weapon is the manpower, the soul of the Greeks, you all.

We Greeks fight for our faith and country, we fight to defend our national sovereignty, territorial integrity and national pride.
    
We are all proud of the mission you are accomplishing.

Allow me to congratulate you on behalf of all the Greeks and thank you for your service.

I believe that with the activities planned by HAGS for the enhancement of the National Guard and the reservists, concerning their further  training and the assets to be made available this year, in combination with  the training provided to our personnel, we will be able to enhance the efficiency of the country.

I wish all the best to all of you, and once more allow me to extend my thank yous for all you have achieved”.