Greece celebrated OXI Day on Monday, October 28 with a number of military and student parades across different cities.
OXI Day marks Greece’s entry into World War II on 28 October 1940 after it defied an Italian ultimatum and the Axis occupation.
On Monday, Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou laid a wreath at a war memorial in Thessaloniki and attended the large military parade in the northern port city.
President Sakellaropoulou was accompanied by Greece’s Defence Minister Nikos Dendias and other officials at the annual military parade in downtown Thessaloniki, which is also celebrating its patron, Saint Dimitrios.
In Athens, meanwhile, schools held student parades, with the biggest taking place in front of Parliament on Syntagma Square and attended by several ministers and other officials.
Greece’s Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis presided over the student parade in the western Athens suburb of Peristeri. He gave a brief address and described today’s youngsters as the country’s greatest “strength.”
“It is our duty to provide these children with the necessary tools so they can live a better life than that of their parents. But they must always remember that democracy is a form of government that requires constant attendance, active participation and a civil and respectful dialogue,” Mitsotakis said.
Source: Ekathimerini.
