official texts and speeches
"The Enduring Ties Between the U.S. and Greece"
by Ambassador Charles P. Ries
at the opening ceremony of the American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association (AHEPA) 6th District Annual Convention
Thessaloniki, May 25, 2005
Good evening. Dr. Barich, thank you for that kind introduction. President Economou, District Governors Doussias and Psita, chapter presidents, members of AHEPA and the Daughters of Penelope, representatives of national and local government, Reverend Father, other religious and community organization leaders, thank you for joining us and thank you to AHEPA for hosting this wonderful event tonight.
This is an impressive gathering- District 25 of AHEPA and all of your many friends. A fine example, I think, of AHEPA’s status as one of the leading institutions promoting the ties between America and Greece. It is a pleasure to be here with so many friends, in such a beautiful city, to talk about the relationship between Greece and America.
As many of you know, last week was a historic one for Greece. People around the world turned on their televisions to see the outcome of a great event of worldwide importance. Photographers, journalists and governments spent months choreographing what would essentially be something that lasted only a few minutes. There was high drama as live news programs awaited the results of the event. In the end, Greece’s prominence was displayed for all to see as voices rang out, saying, in effect, “you’re my number one!” I was talking, of course, of President Bush’s visit with Prime Minister Karamanlis.
Maybe news of our leaders’ visit is not what everyone was watching last weekend, but I can confirm that Elena Paparizou’s victory—as worthy as it was—was not the only news last weekend. President Bush and Prime Minister Karamanlis confirmed the strength of our bilateral relationship during their second meeting of the past year. Both men recognized that the United States and Greece are good friends, key allies and strategic partners during these times of great change in the world.
This meeting confirmed that the relationship between our countries, allied as democracies, and tied together by families, education, and history, has deepened and matured over good times and difficult times. So today, we are able to face the challenges of this century in many productive ways: working directly together, as partners in NATO, as friends through the EU, and as members of the UN Security Council.
The strength of this relationship should be no surprise, given the close, enduring ties between our countries. Some ties are obvious, such as the large Greek-American communities both here and in the United States that AHEPA represents. Some are less apparent, but just as deep. It is these important educational and historical ties that I would like to focus on in my remarks tonight.
Educational Ties
The educational links between Americans and Greeks are large and varied. This year alone, thousands of our children, siblings, relatives and friends are studying or doing research abroad. They are Fulbright grantees, study-abroad students, scholarship winners, researchers, you name it. In fact, if you can think of a way to exchange students between our countries, it is probably is already happening.
The good news is that our educational ties are strengthening. More than 2000 Greeks are studying in the United States this year, which is a higher proportion than most other European countries. The Greek Fulbright program, which is supported by the Greek and U.S. governments and through private donations, is attracting more applicants than ever.
These are things of which we can be proud. Reaching out and bringing in international students is important to the growth and diversity of our academic institutions. Studying abroad promotes mutual understanding between countries and creates life-long friendships across borders and seas. Leaders from Costas Karamanlis to Bill Clinton were influenced by their study abroad. The relationships that follow connect our political, economic and cultural lives and make them more vibrant. I am convinced these ties are the foundation of the excellent bilateral relationship our countries share today.
At the beginning of the Cold War, when Senator Fulbright was advocating for what would eventually become the Fulbright program, he said something that was considered pretty radical for the time.
He said: “In the long course of history, having people who understand your thoughts is much greater security than another submarine.”
Today, more than 255,000 people worldwide, including hundreds of hundreds Greeks, have participated in Fulbright exchanges. Add to that the millions, including hundreds of thousands of Greeks, who have studied in the United States on their own and one must wonder how many of these millions around the world are in decision-making positions in governments, universities, corporations? How many of them are educating or raising the next generation of decision-makers?
Of course Senator Fulbright wasn’t really saying anything new. Like so many great American ideas, his concept was originally Greek. It was Plato who said, “The direction in which education starts a man will determine his future life.”
Over the few months I've been here, I have heard stories of Greeks who have studied in the United States and have then returned to share their experiences in interesting ways. There was a Greek student who studied a few years ago at Gallaudet in Washington, DC. If you haven’t heard of Gallaudet, it is America’s, if not the world’s, foremost university for the hearing-impaired. This fellow did not just take his education in America and move on. He came back to Greece and now is running a program for disabled students.
I also read recently about teams of students from Thessaloniki that are doing phenomenally well in Microsoft’s worldwide software development contest. Last year’s team placed third in the world for software they created to aid the visually impaired, and this year’s team has so far placed second in Southeast Europe for a program to aid hearing-impaired persons.
It is not just individuals, either. There are also several venerable institutions in Greece, founded by Americans with Greek partners that are strengthening the ties among us.
The American School of Classical Studies was founded in 1881 by Charles Norton, who wanted to build a school where, in his words, “young scholars might carry on the study of Greek thought and life[.]”
The American School shows that Greeks and Americans, working together, can move mountains. They actually excavate them regularly. The School has been working in ancient Corinth for more than 100 years and on the Athens Agora for over 70 years. During the spectacular Olympic Games in AthensAmerican School helped explain ancient Greece to hundreds of millions of viewers on NBC. last year, archeologists from the
Another unique institution right here in Thessaloniki is the AmericanFarmSchool. The Farm School was started in 1904 by American missionary John Henry House and pioneered American-style agricultural education in Greece. It survived the upheavals, war and occupation, of the first half of the 20th Today, the Farm School, with an accredited high school and a technical college is preparing more than 200 students from Greek villages, and 39 students from other Balkan countries. AHEPANS can be proud of your continuing support of the Farm School’s scholarship program. AnatoliaCollege regularly sends graduates to America’s best universities and the American College of Thessaloniki offers high quality American education here in Greece. Pinewood International School of Thessaloniki and other fine schools such as the American Community School in Athens contribute in their way to the network of enduring Greek-American ties. century.
I can tell you that if it were just up to diplomats and politicians, we would not have the breadth, depth, of the Greek American relationship we have today. It takes organizations like AHEPA, schools like Anatolia, the AmericanCollege of Thessaloniki, and Pinewood, exchange programs and the hard work of dedicated individuals like you to keep us strong. There are graduates of all of these programs living and working in both of our societies. Every one of them, each of you, are part of the ties between our countries.
Nothing probably does more to keep those traditions alive than your good words. How many of you have encouraged others, by word or deed, to travel or to go to school or work in the United States? I am here to ask you to keep talking up America in this country. If you know a young person thinking about studying in the States, pass along your experiences. Tell them about the Fulbright office, where they can talk for free to an educational advisor, or send them to the Internet. Let them find out about scholarships and do some research on American universities. Let them know that studying in the U.S. remains a terrific choice if they want a world-class education. And there are many ways we can help support students already studying in the United States. It isn’t necessarily financial. AHEPA chapters and AHEPA families in the United States can open their homes and their communities to Greek students studying in the United States, for whom it can sometimes be lonely.
Other Ties
In addition to educational ties, Greece and the United States can be proud of the network of cultural ties the countries have developed. Our nations are engaged in a constant cultural dialogue through exhibitions, performances, concerts, film screenings and other events. One example of this dialogue is the retrospective of Lucas Samaras currently on display at the National Gallery, which brings his works here for the first time.
AHEPA contributes greatly to our social ties, as well. While AHEPA works to promote Hellenism in the United States, your actions here in Greece do much to exhibit well the depth of the American commitment to philanthropy and education. The AHEPA hospital, the American Farm School scholarship program, AHEPA’s purchase of wheelchairs for paraplegic athletes and contributions to Agios Nektarios institution for disabled children are but a few of your numerous contributions to Northern Greece, and to the relationship between our two great nations.
Historical Ties
The ties between our countries have deep historical roots. Now I know Greeks and Americans think about history a little bit differently. For Greeks, ancient history is anything that happened before Homer wrote the Iliad. For Americans, ancient history is anything that happened before Homer Simpson ate the first donut.
The U.S. and Greece, of course, were allies in the great wars of the last century, and the U.S. took the lead in helping Greece in the aftermath of World War II. But the U.S. and Greece share historical ties that go all the way back to pre-revolutionary days in both countries. Great American patriots like Thomas Jefferson and John Adams were dazzled by Greek ideas, which inspired our Constitution and Declaration of Independence, the foundation of our democratic government. Thomas Jefferson used to send texts by the Greek historian Polybius to his colleagues to convince them that we needed a government that would have a system of checks and balances.
Greeks and Americans fought and died in each other's revolutions. Perhaps the most famous of these is Demetrios Ypsilantis who sailed to America with other Greeks and fought in our revolution. Ypsilantis is ancestor to another Demetrios Ypsilantis who is a well-known hero in Greece’s war for independence. I was in Hydra recently and was told that arms factories there supplied the American colonists with the first kegs of gunpowder used in the fight for American independence. I have not verified this fact, but it sounds great!
Our revolutionary belief in the spirit of ancient Greece was so strong that in an early Congress there was a serious consideration of making Greek the official language of the United States. If they had done so, I'm sure that my own Greek would be much better.
Nearly fifty years after our revolution, Greeks set about fighting for their own freedom. They took the cause directly to the American people, of course. In 1821, the Messenian Senate at Kalamata wrote a letter to the American people asking for help against the Ottomans. They asked for "an alliance founded on freedom and virtue." Many Americans responded and many Americans still respond.
U.S.-Greek Relations Today
Both the American and Greek revolutions inspired many to seek freedom from their own oppressors. Indeed, throughout the centuries, there have been times when people, united in purpose and opposition to tyranny have moved their countries towards freedom. The American, French, and Greek revolutions in the late 18th and early 19th centuries; the fall of the Berlin Wall and disintegration of the Soviet Bloc fifteen years ago; these were times of triumph over tyranny.
Democracy, that ancient Greek innovation that keeps proving its superiority, is on the march again. There are new democracies standing up in Ukraine, Georgia, Lebanon, the Palestinian territories, Iraq and Afghanistan. People everywhere, emboldened by the success of democratic ideas elsewhere, are catching on. Now more than ever, we must prove our commitment to the values of liberty and freedom by supporting new democracies emerging from authoritarianism and tyranny.
As two of the older democracies on the planet, Greece and the United States I hope we will approach this responsibility as full partners, supported by the understanding that comes from our enduring ties. I want to thank you for helping to build those ties, helping to strengthen them, and for bringing your experiences in America home, here in Greece. have a special responsibility to support, defend and mentor these emerging democracies.
So I think it’s probably a violation of your basic human rights that I have spoken so long and before dinner, so let me finish by proposing a toast:
Zito America!
Zito Hellas!
Thank you.