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The scene was set at the congressional headquarters on Capitol Hill in Washington for the reception of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who became the first Greek leader to address both houses of the United States legislature, was impressive both in front of the cameras, which carried the image of standing congressmen and senators from both parties giving the speaker a standing ovation, and behind them.
- PM for Mitsotakis' speech to the US Congress: Crucial for our country's struggle[/B]
- Mitsotakis to the US Congress. At the end of Mitsotakis' speech, moreover, there were not a few American politicians who - after giving him a "rapturous" reception - congratulated him on what he had said earlier and, holding in their hands a copy of his speech, which had been distributed to them, asked the Greek Prime Minister to sign it, in the form of an autograph. In the same vein, House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi called the Prime Minister's speech "wonderful and uniquely inspiring".[/P]
The experienced American politician compared the speech of Kyriakos Mitsotakis with a similar speech on democracy delivered 30 years ago by Czech President and famous author Vaclav Havel. "The Prime Minister's speech today is in that category", Pelosi pointed out. While many were those who described it as "historic", not only because it is not usual for a foreign leader to address a joint meeting of the joint bodies, but more for the messages he sent out regarding democracy and the importance of the functioning of its institutions for social cohesion.
Maps, arms and the embargo
While on Capitol and during his dense contacts with political men and women from both the Democratic and Republican parties, Kyriakos Mitsotakis reportedly raised the issue of Turkish provocations creating a climate of instability in the Eastern Mediterranean.
According to his associates, the prime minister followed up on the clarity with which he condemned from the floor of Congress the revisionist policies and the questioning of our sovereign rights with the overflights of planes over the Greek islands, showed many interlocutors Turkish maps showing the borders of the so-called 'Blue Homeland' in order to demonstrate the threatening intentions of our neighbour.
The prime minister's aim was to convince his interlocutors not to lift the embargo imposed by Congress on the upgrade of the F-16 aircraft available to Ankara, as well as on the ordering of new ones, and on its participation in the manufacture and supply of 5th generation F-35 aircraft.
"We are with you," was, according to well-informed sources, Pelosi's reaction when Mitsotakis showed her the Turkish maps, something she had done the previous day during the White House one-on-one[/B] with President Joe Biden.
The assurances-promises that Mitsotakis received were, according to his associates, that Congress would not change its stance determined by Turkey's choice to procure the Russian-made S-400 anti-aircraft systems, against the will of its American allies.
On the contrary, the mood in Congress, the same sources say, was positive both in favour of Greece's procurement of F-35 aircraft and of its becoming an energy hub linking Africa and Asia with Europe, so that the latter can become independent of the need for Russian energy.
What the government says about the trip
Summing up the results of the Prime Minister's two-day visit to the American capital, government sources described it as "absolutely successful", as, they noted, "Greece returned dynamically to the global and regional scene as a leading power in the Balkans and Southeastern Europe". It is, they added, "a pole of stability, law, security and development."
They added that our country "holds the keys to peace[/B] and energy stability in the wider region", while "its heritage of values and principles is recognised as the source of modern Western civilisation" and "the moral guardian of freedom and democracy".[BR]On the relations between Greece and the United States, they pointed out that "beyond historical friendship, today they have mutual interests and common constitutional principles". They added that "in the last three years Greece has been growing stronger with the progress ensured by the exploitation of its comparative advantages and its human potential, thanks to the government's plan."
They concluded by noting that "the people have seen the results of our great political choices and our hard work. We are now at the level we deserve and this is a starting point to do even better."
The Prime Minister was also received with enthusiasm at the last stop of his visit to the United States by hundreds of members of the Greek Diaspora who attended a reception hosted by organizations of the Greek American community.
The event, which was attended for a few minutes by Speaker of the House Mrs Pelosi, but was also attended by other members of the US political class, such as the well-known philhellene Senator Robert Menendez, who chairs the powerful International Relations Committee, was graced by the Prime Minister with the presence of important personalities from the Greek community.
The 12 who received medals are.
*George Behrakis George Behrakis: Senior Brigadier General of the Order of the Phoenix, businessman and philanthropist.
*Gus Billirakis: Senior Brigadier General of the Order of the Phoenix, member of the US House of Representatives since 2007.
*Katherine Elizabeth Fleming: Brigadier General of the Order of Mercy, Dean of New York University.
*Marina Hatsopoulos: Gold Cross of the Order of Merit, President of the Hellenic Innovation Network.
*Alexandros Karloutsos: Gold Cross of the Order of the Phoenix to the priest who served for more than 30 years as General Director of the Archdiocese of America.
*Constantine Manos: Silver Cross of the Order of the Phoenix, photographer
*George Marcus: Brigadier General of the Order of the Phoenix, president of Marcus & Millichap.
*George Pavlakis: Gold Cross of the Order of the Phoenix, Director of the Human Retrovirus Division, Vaccine Division, U.S. National Cancer Institute.
*Olympia Snowe: Senior Brigadier General of the Order of Merit, former United States Senator.
*Angelo Tsakopoulos: Brigadier General of the Order of the Phoenix, Chairman of AKT Investments.
*Endy Zemenides: Brigadier General of the Order of the Phoenix, Executive Director at the Hellenic American Leadership Council (HALC).Immediately after the medal ceremony, the Prime Minister and his colleagues took the plane back to Athens.
Source: Proto Thema
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Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or Cyprus Times
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