On Monday, 2 December 2019, the President of the Hellenic Republic, Mr. Prokopios Pavlopoulos, the Minister of National Defence, Mr. Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos, the Chief of Hellenic National Defence General Staff, General (HAF) Christos Christodoulou, and the Chief of Hellenic Navy General Staff, Vice Admiral Nikolaos Tsounis HN, attended the ceremony for the naming and induction to the Hellenic Navy of General Support Ship “ATLAS-1”, which took place in Salamis Naval Base.
The ship is yet another kind donation by the President of “Aikaterini Laskaridis” Foundation, Mr. Panagiotis Laskaridis.
In his address, the Minister of National Defence, Mr. Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos, stated the following:
“It is a great honour and pleasure to be given the opportunity today to attend and welcome the induction of General Support Ship “ATLAS-1” to our Hellenic Navy. Today’s induction is particularly important to the Hellenic Navy, since it signifies after a long time the induction of a large ship which greatly enhances its operational capabilities.
The role of “ATLAS-1” as a General Support Ship is what makes it very important for the operational plans and the deployment of the fleet in an area of national interest that is one and indivisible. One country and its sea. One sea and its colour, the blue of the Greek Aegean. The sea and Greece are one and the same and those seeking and inventing novel and unhistorical characterisations for the sea are those who feel that the sea is not their natural space, but rather something foreign to them.
As I said, the importance of “ATLAS-1” for the Hellenic Navy is great. Besides, it is not by chance that these ships are characterised as high value ships, in operational terms, what we frequently refer to as force multipliers. But, for the Armed Forces and the Nation in general, force multipliers are not just the material assets and systems, but mainly the personnel, something that was proven once again with the immediate response of the crew of “ATLAS-1” to the challenge of the acceptance and successful induction of a new ship to the Hellenic Navy, and for that I congratulate and thank them.
So, while stressing the importance of team and individual efforts and contribution, I would like at this point to stress the importance of Mr. Panagiotis Laskaridis’ work, who is always there to support society and, in particular, the Armed Forces, in this case the Hellenic Navy. I would like to thank him on behalf of the State for his material and moral support to society and the Armed Forces, acting as a modern-day Atlas to carry a substantial part of the support to the Armed Forces.
Naval power has always been important to Hellenism, either through the Merchant Marine or the Navy. In our history, this distinction between the Merchant Marine and the Navy has not always been clear, since the seamanship and naval tradition of the Greeks has always been there, both during peace, as well as during the Nation’s struggles, often involving the same people and the same assets.
So, the close connection of Panagiotis Laskaridis with the Hellenic Navy and his multifaceted contribution to it affirms in the best manner the unbreakable bond between the Hellenic Merchant Marine and the Hellenic Navy as joint guardians of Greek naval power and seamanship.
Finally, I would like to wish the Captain and crew of “ATLAS-1” to always have the blessing and protection of Saint Nikolaos and to carry our flag proudly in the Aegean, the Mediterranean, and wherever else duty calls.
May “ATLAS-1” also carry its part of the burden of the support of Hellenic Navy operations.
I wish you fair winds and following seas and may Saint Nikolaos always be with you”.
In his address, the Chief of Hellenic National Defence General Staff, General (HAF) Christos Christodoulou, stated the following:
“It is a great pleasure to be here today at Salamis Naval Base for the naming ceremony and the induction of a General Support Ship to our Fleet as a result of yet another praiseworthy contribution initiative by Mr. Panagiotis Laskaridis to our Navy.
The support to our country and, in particular, the Hellenic Armed Forces during the past few years by Mr. Laskaridis is a tangible expression of pure patriotic duty. So, please allow me to express my gratitude.
It is well-known and self-evident that operations without support are impossible and anyone who attempts to do so is doomed to fail. The induction of the new General Support Ship to the Hellenic Navy, which I believe is merely the first step towards the modernisation of the Fleet in this area, brings great potential for exploitation of its capabilities.
I am convinced that the excellent specifications of this ship, its modern equipment, and its capability to provide multifaceted support to Fleet operations will be properly used by the Hellenic Navy.
So, with great satisfaction, I welcome the induction of the new ship to the Armed Forces.
Mr. Laskaridis, dear Panos, I hope that your patriotic gesture will also motivate others who have the ability and, above all, the wish to provide tangible support to the Armed Forces during this critical period.
I wholeheartedly thank you, once again, and we all promise, especially the crew that will man our new ship, that it will be used operationally in the best possible way.
In conclusion, I wish the ship and the crew fair winds and following seas and may Saint Nikolaos always be with them”.
In his address, the Chief of Hellenic Navy General Staff, Vice Admiral Nikolaos Tsounis HN, stated the following:
“I belong to a small country. A rocky promontory in the Mediterranean, it has nothing to distinguish it but the efforts of its people, the sea, and the light of the sun. It is a small country, but its tradition is immense and has been handed down through the centuries without interruption”.
This country, the country of Seferis, a small country with a great history, with the uninterrupted tradition which, against all odds, managed to survive for more than 3000 years, this is the country we must protect, securing its integrity and the freedom and prosperity of its people.
It is a heavy duty, unbearable one might say; but history, the those that came before us, and those to come after us demand us to prove ourselves worthy of our ancestors, who from generation to generation handed down our country a little bit bigger, a little bit better, but mainly proud of its contribution to mankind.
It is a difficult effort, particularly during these times when the country, like a ship hit by a storm, struggles to overcome an economic and social crisis in a global system that becomes every day more unstable, more unpredictable, hence more difficult to manage.
Yes, the effort is difficult and requires collective work, the professionals are not enough, it takes the entire society’s support, it takes convergence, but to do that it takes leaders to show the way and Mr. Laskaridis is one of them, once again showing the way. This time with his donation of General Support Ship ATLAS I.
It is a multirole ship with great capabilities that provides our Navy with multiple options and advantages to support the Fleet’s ships and activities.
General Support Ship ATLAS I, like the Atlas of Greek mythology, will bear a great “burden” and a very critical part of our Fleet’s mission. The ship’s capabilities are multiple and include: Fleet ship replenishment, cargo transport, excellent towing capabilities, rescue, launching and recovery of objects from the sea with great accuracy, fire fighting, marine pollution response, and submarine rescue platform.
Mr. Laskaridis,
I’d like to thank you for the donation of this ship. I would also like to assure you that your contribution, which is merely the latest of a series of equally important donations in the recent past, will be used in the best way possible. You continue a great tradition of contribution to the Hellenic Navy as the last in a line of benefactors of this small country, which survives against all odds thanks to the love of its children. I wish and hope that your generous contribution will constitute an example for us all of contribution to the country, to the extent of everyone’s capabilities.
Your Excellency, Mr. President,
today, as all ongoing challenges we are called to deal with are directly related to the sea environment, it is more than ever imperative to maintain our battle worthiness and reinforce our Fleet. The efforts to reinforce the Fleet through the acquisition of new ships and the modernisation of older ones must be a priority and continuous, despite the existing fiscal restrictions.
In conclusion, I would like to thank Ms. Souzana Laskaridi for accepting the proposal to be the godmother of the ship.
To the ship’s Captain and crew, I would like to say that they should make full use of the ship’s operational capabilities and fulfil their duty, according to the traditions of the Hellenic Navy, which the Greek people hold in high esteem, during both peacetime and difficult times. May Saint Nikolaos always be with you”.
In his address, Mr. Panagiotis Laskaridis stated the following:
“Today is indeed a great day for me and my family because we were finally able to provide the Navy with something which I believe will enable it to do its job and its operations more effectively, more economically, better than now.
Admiral, your praise was a little exaggerated as always, thank you for that, but in my opinion, as I have said before, the State does not need to honour its citizens, but rather the citizens must honour the State and Country, because the state owes nothing to the citizens, but rather we, the citizens, owe to the country. We undertake this debt from the moment we are born and it is a debt of honour, it must always be repaid in full and can not be negotiated, bargained, or written off.
Mr. President, our Navy stands on two pillars.
One is its assets, its ships, its weapons, its machinery, its equipment.
This part, for the reasons also mentioned by the Chief, has been neglected during the past few years and something needs to be done right now in order to bring it back to the necessary status.
And this comes from someone who all his life worked with old ships trying to make them better. The other pillar is its personnel and, of course, no Greek has any complaint from the personnel of the Navy and our Armed Forces. But in this part too, because this has also been my job all my life, making captains and engineers, believe me, I’d rather have a good Officer than a good ship. There are many good ships and can be found quickly and easily, but it takes years to make good Officers.
That’s why we lay particular emphasis on how to select them and how to train them and how to promote their career and how to punish them, if necessary, carefully and sparingly, especially when it’s not their fault, but something else’s, because it’s a thousand times better to have Officers who make mistakes, but prove themselves worthy when the time comes, than to have Officers who make no mistakes, but will let you high and dry in a difficult moment.
Mr. President,
the Chief referred to the need to support the Armed Forces and rest assured that the Greek people will do its best, however the help we, the citizens, can offer is very small.
The State must give more and I am certain that, if you ask any Greek today, he will tell you that the reinforcement of the Armed Forces is a first priority. And we also have here with us someone who said something which I think echoes what we all think and fear, that if something ever happens, we will have to face it alone.
So we need this ship and I hope that, when it is inducted to the Navy and smoothly integrated and proves itself a useful tool, we will meet again with the Chiefs and the Staff to discuss what else we can do to continue this assistance.
This assistance must come from all Greeks. Those who have a lot will give a lot, those who have little will give little, and those who have nothing will give nothing. This assistance by the Greek people, Mr. President, does not come without some ulterior motive. What is that?
We want to know and trust that if – God forbid – the time comes when the personnel of our Armed Forces need to show self-sacrifice and bravery, they will think as Kanaris did when someone asked him “Admiral, how did you do this feat? How did you manage to burn the Turkish flagship?” and Kanaris simply replied: “I woke up one day and said to myself, Konstantis, today you will die for Greece”.
To our ship, the Captain, the Officers, the NCOs, and the crew, I would like to wholeheartedly wish fair winds and following seas and may Saint Nikolaos always be with you.
Thank you very much”.
