[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 153 (Tuesday, October 28, 2003)]
[House]
[Page H9970]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                OXI DAY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise proudly to celebrate ``oxi'' day. 
The historical significance of this day and what it meant to the 
outcome of World War II cannot be overstated. By October of 1940, World 
War II had begun and the Nazi war machine was already in high gear. 
Along with Hitler's ally, Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, the German 
and Italian forces were threatening the whole of Europe. European 
nations were bowing to tyranny and destruction as the Germans and the 
Italians marched through Europe. Great Britain endured German's aerial 
bombardment, forcing Hitler to seek another avenue to subdue the 
British. Hitler intended to eliminate British operations in the 
Mediterranean in order to weaken their ability to deter German 
advances.
  To achieve this, Hitler needed the Axis powers to strike at British 
forces in Greece. By conquering Greece, Hitler would gain access to an 
important connecting link with Italian bases in the Dodecanese Islands. 
This would give the Italians a stranglehold on British positions in 
Egypt where British forces were already facing attack from the Italian 
Army in North Africa. The British considered the defense of Egypt vital 
to Allied positions in the oil-rich Middle East.
  On October 28, 1940, the Italian ambassador in Athens presented an 
insulting ultimatum to Greek Prime Minister Metaxas, demanding the 
unconditional surrender of Greece or Italy would declare war and invade 
Greece. Mussolini had given the Greek Prime Minister Metaxas 3 hours to 
reply.

                              {time}  2030

  Prime Minister Metaxas responded with the now historic word ``oxi,'' 
which means ``no'' in Greek. Italy then invaded.
  It is important to note that in addition to Greece having a 
population seven times smaller than Italy, the disparity in their armed 
forces was even greater. Italy had close to 10 times the firepower of 
Greece in its army and navy and seven times the troops. Italy's large 
air force had total air superiority, since Greece had a very small 
defensive air force. However, despite their lack of equipment, the 
Greek army proved to be well-trained and resourceful. Within a week of 
the invasion, it was clear that Italian forces were suffering serious 
setbacks, despite having control of the air and fielding superior 
armored vehicles.
  On November 14, the Greek army launched a counter-offensive and 
quickly drove the Italian forces back into Albania. The fighting 
continued for a few more months. In a last ditch effort to bring the 
war to a close before the Italians would be forced to ask Hitler to 
intervene, they launched another assault on March 12, 1941. After 6 
days of fighting, the Italians made only insignificant gains, and it 
became clear that German intervention was necessary.
  On April 6, 1941, Hitler ordered the German invasion of Greece. It 
took the Germans 5 weeks to finally end the conflict. This delay proved 
to be critical to the outcome of the war.
  Due to Mussolini's humiliating defeat by the Greeks in Albania and 
Greece, Hitler was compelled to capture the Balkans, mainly Yugoslovia 
and Greece, thus delaying his Barbarossa plan to invade and capture the 
Soviet Union before the winter of 1941. The Greek resistance, both in 
Albania and in the other famous battle in Crete, altered, favorably for 
the allies, his Barbarossa timetable by at least 6 months.
  Perhaps most importantly, the Germans never gained the advantage 
against the British. Although Germany had conquered much of Europe, its 
inability to decimate British and Russian forces early in the war would 
eventually prove to be fatal. Thanks to the heroic Greek resistance and 
their countless sacrifices, the war tide had been permanently changed 
for Hitler due to the delay of this critical timetable.
  Nearly one million Hellenes died during that time. That was 14 
percent of the population in 1940. That is equivalent, Mr. Speaker, to 
losing 39 million people in this country today in the case of a war to 
defend our country.
  The entire Western world, discouraged and fearful of the Axis powers 
and the growing ugly war, took hope from these incredible victories. 
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill said of the Greeks, ``Today we 
say the Greeks fight like heroes; from now on we will say that heroes 
fight like Greeks.''
  A very small number of those Greeks who fought like heroes are still 
alive today. Some now are American citizens. One of these heroes lives 
in my Congressional district, Mr. Demetrios Palaskas, who, along with 
others, has shared those traumatic stories of the mountain fighting by 
the rag-tag Greeks against such a powerful equipped invader. We all 
salute you, Mr. Palaskas, you and your many fellow heroes, for helping 
to keep the world free.
  Mr. Speaker, ``oxi'' day is an inspiration to all those who cherish 
democracy and freedom. It marks defiance against terrible odds. As an 
American of Greek descent, I am proud to honor the memory of those 
brave patriots who fought for freedom for themselves and ultimately for 
all the free world on this important day.

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