Parade commemorates World War II campaign
The customary military parade celebrating the anniversary of Greece’s entry into World War II took place in Thessaloniki Friday.
As usual, the parade was attended by several officials, led by President Katerina Sakellaropoulou. Foreign dignitaries, including US Ambassador to Greece George Tsunis, also attended.
The highlight of the parade was the passage of several airplanes, including newly-acquired French-built Rafale fighters. Also on display were German-made “Marten 1” infantry fighting vehicles given to Greece in replacement of armored units sent to Ukraine. A World-War II-vintage Spitfire MJ 755 also joined the overflight.
“The ‘No’ of October 28, 1940, to the fascist invasion and our people’s heroic resistance are one of the most glorious moments of our modern history, which we respectfully commemorated in today’s parade,” Sakellaropoulou said after the event.
“The spirit of national unity forged in the Albanian epic is a precious legacy for all of us,” Sakellaropoulou added.
Political leaders added their own messages: Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, attending a commemorative event in the northwestern city of Ioannina, said that “our own duty is to bequeath to younger generation a stronger, more secure, more prosperous and more just fatherland.”
Opposition leader Alexis Tsipras, on holiday in Hungary, posted a message saying, among other things, that, at a time of war, instability and threats “we are for peace, but we are united against Turkish threats and we do not retreat in the slightest where our sovereign rights are concerned.”
On October 28, 1940, Italian troops invaded Greece from Albania, which they had conquered in five days in April 1939.
Before the invasion, the Italian Ambassador to Greece had visited the Greek dictator, Ioannis Metaxas, and had given him a letter demanding free passage for Italian troops, which would occupy some strategic points, such as ports and airports, to use in support in its campaign against the British in North Africa, which had begun in June 1940.
Metaxas, upon reading the document, replied, in French: “Alors, c’est la guerre” (“So, this means war”). Italian troops crossed the border a little over two hours later, at 6 a.m. Metaxas’ response has been condensed by legend into what is now celebrated as “Ochi (No) Day.”
Greek forces soon stopped the Italian advance and counterattacked, driving deep into Albania. The front stabilized in December and a major Italian Spring offensive failed to produce any significant results.
Italy’s failure forced Adolf Hitler’s Germany to come to the rescue, invading Greece and Yugoslavia on April 6, 1941 and ending its campaign with the capture of Crete on June 1st. The campaign forced Hitler to delay his planned invasion of the Soviet Union by over a month and the heavy losses sustained by German paratroopers in Crete resulted in Germany’s abandonment of airborne operations for the rest of World War II.
