Athens News Agency: News in English, 06-10-28
CONTENTS
[01] Annual 'OXI Day' parades honor Greece's entry into WWII
[01] Annual 'OXI Day' parades honor Greece's entry into WWII
Greece on Saturday commemorated the nationâs refusal to allow Axis
forces to pass through the country on Oct. 28, 1940 -- essentially
marking the countryâs entry into WWII -- with parades.
In Thessaloniki, the annual military parade was held in the presence of
President of the Republic Karolos Papoulias, Defence Minister Evangelos
Meimarakis and main opposition leader George Papandreou.
Immediately after the parade, Papoulias greeted handicapped veterans
and National Resistance fighters.
"Our military is a pre-emptive force to be reckoned with by those that
may think they can dispute our countryâs sovereign rights," Papoulias
told reporters, while adding that the armed forces are also a creative
force for peace in the region, "a force of peace that is based on a
respect for international law, treaties and pacts..."
Papoulias had arrived in the northern port city of Thessaloniki on
Thursday to attend three-day celebrations marking the feast day of the
city's patron saint, Aghios Demetrius (St. Demetrius), the anniversary
of the city's liberation from Ottoman rule (1912) and the anniversary
of Greece's entry into WWII (1940).
Caption: Students and pupils march during a parade through downtown
Athens on Saturday, Oct. 28, 2006, as Education Minister Marietta
Yiannakou reviews the parade. ANA-MPA photo / K. Mavrona.
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