[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 84 (Tuesday, May 17, 2022)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
{time} 1051
JOINT MEETING TO HEAR AN ADDRESS BY HIS EXCELLENCY KYRIAKOS MITSOTAKIS,
PRIME MINISTER OF THE HELLENIC REPUBLIC
During the recess, the House was called to order by the Speaker at 10
o'clock and 51 minutes a.m.
The Assistant to the Sergeant at Arms, Ms. Kathleen Joyce, announced
the Vice President and Members of the U.S. Senate, who entered the Hall
of the House of Representatives, the Vice President taking the chair at
the right of the Speaker, and the Members of the Senate the seats
reserved for them.
The SPEAKER. The joint meeting will come to order.
The Chair appoints as members of the committee on the part of the
House to escort His Excellency Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Prime Minister of
the Hellenic Republic, into the House Chamber:
The gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer);
The gentlewoman from Massachusetts (Ms. Clark);
The gentleman from New York (Mr. Meeks);
The gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney);
The gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Sarbanes);
The gentlewoman from Nevada (Ms. Titus);
The gentleman from Florida (Mr. Crist);
The gentleman from New Hampshire (Mr. Pappas);
The gentleman from California (Mr. McCarthy);
The gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Scalise);
The gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Palmer);
The gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Ferguson);
The gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Cole);
The gentleman from Texas (Mr. McCaul);
The gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis); and
The gentlewoman from New York, (Ms. Malliotakis).
The VICE PRESIDENT. The President of the Senate, at the direction of
that body, appoints the following Senators as members of the committee
on the part of the Senate to escort His Excellency Kyriakos Mitsotakis,
Prime Minister of the Hellenic Republic, into the House Chamber:
The Senator from Illinois (Mr. Durbin);
The Senator from Minnesota (Ms. Klobuchar);
The Senator from New Jersey (Mr. Menendez);
The Senator from Kentucky (Mr. McConnell);
The Senator from Iowa (Ms. Ernst); and
The Senator from Idaho (Mr. Risch).
The Assistant to the Sergeant at Arms announced the Acting Dean of
the Diplomatic Corps, Her Excellency Floreta Faber, Ambassador of
Albania.
The Acting Dean of the Diplomatic Corps entered the Hall of the House
of Representatives and took the seat reserved for her.
At 11 o'clock and 7 minutes a.m., the Sergeant at Arms, William J.
Walker, announced His Excellency Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Prime Minister of
the Hellenic Republic.
The Prime Minister of the Hellenic Republic, escorted by the
committee of Senators and Representatives, entered the Hall of the
House of Representatives and stood at the Clerk's desk.
(Applause, the Members rising.)
The SPEAKER. Members of Congress, I have the high privilege and the
distinct honor of presenting to you His Excellency Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
(Applause, the Members rising.)
Prime Minister MITSOTAKIS. Madam Speaker, Madam Vice President,
honorable Members of the United States Congress, ladies and gentlemen,
there is no greater honor for the elected leader of the people who
created democracy than to address the elected Representatives of the
people who founded their country on the Greek model and have promoted
and defended democratic values ever since.
I am conscious as I stand before you today of the deep ties that bind
our two Nations together.
They are a reason for celebration and thanks, but they are also a
reminder of our shared values and beliefs at a time when these, again,
are being tested. Our shared belief in freedom over tyranny, in
democracy over authoritarianism, in the fundamental importance of
respect for the rule of law over war and anarchy.
It is an added honor and a great pleasure for me to address a joint
session of the United States Congress under female leadership, Speaker
Nancy Pelosi and, of course, Vice President Kamala Harris.
For it was a Greek, and a Greek man at that, who first advocated
equal rights for women. In ``The Republic,'' Plato proposed that women
should share all levels of power and take on all challenges, including
military service.
Any state that does not employ the talents of its women, Plato made
clear, is wasting half of its resources. And as the son, husband,
sibling, and father of strong, creative women, I couldn't personally
agree more.
Like all Greeks, every time I come to Washington, I feel as if I am
coming home, because everything I see around me, the architecture, the
art, the ideas carved into marble throughout the city, everything is so
familiar.
Walking into the Lincoln Memorial is like walking into the Parthenon
when it was still intact, before Lord Elgin's art collecting hobby
defaced it, because it was based on the earlier monument. Driving by
the Supreme Court and seeing above the entrance its motto and mission,
``Equal Justice Under Law,'' we remember that this is a concept that
the Greek ancestors first conceived and articulated in a single word,
``insonomia.''
Of course, it was not only Washington's buildings and culture that
were immeasurably influenced by Greece but also the city's main
business, democratic politics, were founded in Athens as well. In fact,
to be brutally frank, we all owe our jobs to our noble ancestors.
But I come here, Madam Speaker, Madam Vice President, not to seek
appreciation from you or praise for them.
I come before you to celebrate a miracle that all free peoples
cherish but that binds Greeks and Americans in a unique way. That
miracle, the Greek idea that would forever change the world, is that
society functions best if all of its citizens are equal and have the
right to share in running their state. In a word, ``democracy,''
``dimokratia.''
It is very, very hard for us to realize how radical this idea of
individual freedom of self-governance was 25 centuries ago when a small
community of Greeks dared to entrust equal political and legal rights
to all its citizens. Women and slaves were excluded, but it was still
such an extraordinary departure from what had gone before it that I
believe it remains the most profound leap of faith in human history.
No society before the Greeks dared to believe that order and freedom
were compatible. All societies before them were a succession of
tyrannies that relied on a strong leader, a king, a pharaoh, an
emperor, to keep them functioning.
This lesson was not lost on the Founders of the United States who
shaped their Constitution, the American Constitution, on the Athenian
model but were wise enough to insert checks and balances to avoid the
excesses that eventually undermined Athenian democracy.
The birth of democracy in ancient Athens brought about an explosion
of the creative spirit in Greece that produced the architecture, the
art, the drama, and the philosophy that have shaped Western
civilization ever since.
The establishment of democracy in the United States has brought about
the greatest expansion of human freedom and human progress the world
has ever known.
Ladies and gentlemen, last year, Greece celebrated 200 years since
the beginning of our war of independence. And in a very strange but
interesting twist of historical fate, it was the Greek people who were
inspired by the foundation of American democracy when they rose against
their oppressor to fight for their own freedom.
What Americans like you had shown us by example is that liberty can
actually be fought for and, even against the odds, won. We understood
the founding of your Republic to be a watershed in the history of the
world, a model for the oppressed nations of Europe, a hope for our own
future.
Right from the start, therefore, our forefathers looked across the
Atlantic for support. From the distant Peloponnese, the leaders of the
Greek revolution sent an appeal in the spring of 1821 to the American
people, their ``friends, fellow citizens, and brethren.''
They spoke of the ``natural sympathy'' the Greeks felt for Americans,
the thirst for freedom that they had both derived from the ancients.
They wrote at the time: ``In imitating you, we imitate our own
ancestors. We shall show ourselves worthy of them in proportion as we
resemble you.''
The Founding Fathers of your Republic were moved and impressed.
``Light and liberty are in steady advance,'' wrote Thomas Jefferson, on
learning of the news from Greece. ``The flames kindled on July 4, 1776,
have spread over too much of the globe to be extinguished by the feeble
engines of despotism.''
Exactly 200 years ago, in 1822, revolutionary Greeks assembled at
Epidavros, debated, and we drew up our first Constitution. And with
this document, we introduced into the newly liberated Greek lands a new
language of rights. Above all, the right of a nation to throw off the
shackles of tyranny in order to live under the rule of law.
In the words of our Declaration of Independence:
``Have we something lesser than other nations, that we remain
deprived of these rights, or are we of a nature lower or less
civilized, that we should view ourselves as unworthy to enjoy them and
instead be condemned to an eternal slavery, subjected, like automata or
beasts of burden, to the absurd caprices of a cruel tyrant. . . . These
are rights which within Greece we have never ceased to defend by arms
when times and circumstances have permitted.''
A shocking reality: Replace the word ``Greece'' with ``Ukraine'' and
the similarities to today's turbulent world are harrowing.
Two years later, in a little town in western Greece called
Mesolonghi, these exact words were published alongside a translation of
the American Constitution. That book was one of the first-ever books
printed on Greek soil. It stands testimony to the immense values we
Greeks attached from the start of our own future as a liberal and
constitutional polity.
That this little book appeared at the height of the war was
remarkable. That it was printed in Mesolonghi was simply incredible.
Like Mariupol today, Mesolonghi's outnumbered and emaciated defenders
would repeatedly repel wave upon wave of enemy attacks before their
final desperate sortie, an act of extraordinary daring but one that
would ultimately cost hundreds of lives, many of whom were women and
children.
When we see the same suffering among the outnumbered defenders of
Mariupol, a city with a Greek name and deep Greek roots, we are
reminded of Mesolonghi and the costs of our own struggle.
Even today, we have not forgotten the American volunteers who sailed
to fight alongside us. Some of them gave their lives for our freedom.
Their names are honored, and their graves are still cared for.
Nor have we forgotten others of your countrymen who mounted what must
have been one of the first humanitarian efforts in history by sending
Greece aid and assistance. Remarkable figures like Samuel Gridley Howe
cared for women and children who had been left homeless and destitute,
and established hospitals, schools, and orphanages that supported us in
the difficult years that followed.
The first school for girls, Madam Speaker, Madam Vice President, in
Greece was founded in Athens in 1831 by an American pastor, John Hill.
The Hill Memorial School still continues to teach Greek children today
in the historic center of Athens.
This long arc of American philanthropy continued throughout the 19th
century, spreading across the Near and Middle East. And in times of
dire need in the following decades, most notably a century ago, when
hundreds of thousands of refugees streamed into Greece from Asia Minor,
following the catastrophic aftermath of the First World War, American
institutions were there to bring aid and relief.
And, of course, we should not forget it was the Marshall Plan that
helped my country rebuild its infrastructure after the devastating
Second World War and the civil war that ensued.
And in its own way, Greece reciprocated. Among the Greek orphans who
were brought across the Atlantic into the United States to escape the
fighting after 1821 were a future Congressman and a commander in the
U.S. Navy.
Young Greeks saved from the war became American educators and
writers. Many of them were dedicated abolitionists, for the eradication
of slavery was a cause whose urgent necessity spoke directly to men and
women who had once been enslaved themselves.
Over the past two centuries, our two countries have always been on
the right side of history. We fought side by side in world wars to
defend freedom and democracy.
Our democracies have struggled with internal demons. Both our
countries endured the horrific pains of civil wars and the desperation
of economic crises. But we have emerged stronger and more committed to
defend the values that our ancestors gave their lives for.
Esteemed Members of Congress, I began today by saying that this
bicentennial is more than a moment of celebration. It is also a
reminder of the values that bind us together but also the tasks that we
still face.
The world has changed a good deal in recent months, but the warning
signs have been with us for decades. Following the end of the Cold War,
we naively believed that Europe, which had twice driven the world into
global conflict, had finally found the path to peace.
We believed that international cooperation and a shared commitment to
the rule of law now prevailed over guns and armies.
We believed that the deepening of the European Union, a unique
experiment in the history of the world designed to further link our
countries together, would make war on the dark continent unthinkable.
We believed that given the tragic and harrowing experiences of the
20th century, no one would ever venture to suppress another people's
right to exist or alter its borders by force.
We naively ignored the warning signs flashing red. And we even
ignored Russia's actions in Syria and its annexation of Crimea.
We now know that we were wrong.
Today, like all of you, we Greeks look at what is happening just 500
miles to our north, and we are horrified and appalled. We look to Kyiv,
and we look to Odessa, the city where our revolution was first
conceived.
We look at the tragedy unfolding in eastern Ukraine. Mariupol was a
city founded by Catherine the Great in 1778 to resettle Greeks from
Crimea who were fleeing Ottoman rule. And what we see is, once more, a
people who are faced with the necessity of fighting to defend
themselves in order to secure their future and their freedom.
Let me be very clear: We have no animus toward the Russian people,
with whom we have been bound so closely by faith and history. But we
cannot--we simply cannot--be indifferent to a struggle that reminds us
so much of our own.
We, too, know what it is to be forced to reckon with invasion, to
stand up for one's beliefs, and to have to resort to arms to protect
our liberty. We know something about the heroism of the underdog, for
whom the first victory comes from not capitulating in the face of
overwhelming odds, from simply hanging on and praying that others will
come to our aid.
And we, too, understand the importance of friends. We understand the
power of allies in the defense of the values that we share. Without
allies, the Greeks would not, for all their heroism, have been able to
win their independence.
And that is why we recognize the importance of taking sides now. And
we took sides. Unequivocally, we stand by Ukraine against Putin's
aggression.
We delivered humanitarian aid. We supplied the Ukrainians with
weapons to help them defend their homeland. And we have welcomed--we
have welcomed with open arms, the refugees who have fled Ukraine in
search of safety for themselves and their families.
Mr. Putin is striving to create a world in which power is for the
strong state but not the small. A world where territorial claims are
made on the basis of historical fantasies and enforced by aggression,
rather than decided by peace treaties. A world in which armies rather
than diplomats settle disputes.
He will not succeed. He must not succeed. He must not succeed, not
only for the sake of Ukraine, but also in order to send a message to
all, in order to send a message to all you other authoritarian leaders
that historical revisionism and open acts of aggression that violate
international law will not be tolerated by the global community of
democratic states. This language of resentment, of revisionism, and
imperial nostalgia, this language cannot prevail.
And speaking of open acts of aggression, I ask you, esteemed Members
of Congress, not to forget an open wound that has caused Hellenism
unending pain over the past 48 years. I am referring to the invasion
and subsequent division of Cyprus. This issue has to be resolved in
accordance with international law and in line with the relevant
decisions of the United Nations Security Council. As I told President
Biden yesterday, nobody can, nobody ever will accept a two-state
solution in Cyprus.
And the same is true, Madam Speaker, of all other regional disputes.
Greece is a peace-seeking democracy that always extends a hand of
friendship to our neighbors. We are always open to dialogue. But there
is only one framework we can use to resolve our differences:
international law and the unwritten principle of good neighborly
relations.
And I want to be absolutely clear. We will not accept open acts of
aggression that violate our sovereignty and our territorial rights.
These include overflights over Greek islands, which must stop
immediately.
Please also note: The last thing, the last thing that NATO needs at a
time when our focus is on helping Ukraine defeat Russia's aggression is
another source of instability on NATO's southeastern flank. And I ask
you to take this into account when you make defense procurement
decisions concerning the eastern Mediterranean.
The United States has, I believe, vital interests in this part of the
world. It is very important that you remain engaged and work with
partners with whom you share not only common strategic priorities, but
also shared values and a shared history.
Ladies and gentlemen, last Thursday, the Hellenic Parliament ratified
the new Mutual Defense and Cooperation Agreement between our two
countries. Whereas previously it was renewed annually by an act of
Parliament, now it has a 5-year duration, after which it is
automatically renewed, unless one of the parties chooses not to do so.
This agreement is a powerful testament of our enduring strategic
partnership and our commitment to maintain peace and prosperity in the
eastern Mediterranean.
And nowhere is that more obvious than in Souda Bay, which I know many
of you have visited. It is the largest naval base in the eastern
Mediterranean, the only port that can accommodate aircraft carriers.
But it is also obvious in the port city of Alexandroupolis, in
northeastern Greece, which is rapidly becoming an energy hub for the
entire region. This is important. It is important as we seek to rapidly
diversify away from Russian gas, investing in the necessary
infrastructure that will make it possible to import large quantities of
liquefied natural gas. This becomes critical, not just for Greece, but
also for our Balkan neighbors.
I should tell my colleagues; I don't get this much applause in the
Greek Parliament.
We plan to interconnect the Greek electricity grids with Cyprus, with
Israel, but also with Egypt. The purpose is to be able to import cheap,
renewable energy from the Middle East and Africa into the European
electricity system.
But this thriving partnership between our two countries is not just
limited to security and energy. Pfizer has set up a big data analytics
center in Thessaloniki. Microsoft is building state-of-the-art data
centers outside Athens. JP Morgan has invested in one of the leading
Greek fintec companies.
I believe that what American companies see today in Greece is not
just a country endowed with an advantageous geographical position and
blessed with a natural beauty that makes it a magnet for visitors from
all over the world. What they also see is a dynamic economy that has
overcome the difficulties of the pathogenies of the past and is
supporting entrepreneurship and private investment.
And what they see, which is probably the most important aspect of
all, is a young, talented, well-educated workforce. These young,
talented, well-educated Greeks who, after a decade of crisis, choose to
remain in their homeland rather than emigrating; or for those who had
actually left the country, choose to return to Greece now. And I am
convinced they will be the protagonists of Greece's bright future.
Esteemed Members of Congress, I have spoken about the joint paths
that our two great democracies have chartered over the past two
centuries. We have every reason today to celebrate our achievements.
But it would be foolish to remain complacent.
The United States has a crucial role to play today in an even more
complicated world. From addressing climate change to standing up
against authoritarian regimes, from countering fake news and
disinformation to preparing for the next pandemic, the world looks to
the strongest and most prosperous democracy for leadership. You simply
cannot afford to sit on the sidelines.
Multilateralism, in my mind, is not an option; it is a necessity not
only for a more stable world order but also for your own self-interest.
But we also need to put our own house in order. Personally, I am more
worried about the internal fragmentations of our democracies than I
fear the threat of arrogant despots.
We frequently remember the words of President Ronald Reagan:
``Freedom is never more than a generation away from extinction.'' But
let us not forget that Abraham Lincoln referred to the ``unfinished''
business of democracy. And unfinished it is, indeed.
Our democracies are threatened by the sirens of populists who offer
easy solutions to complicated problems. Their voices are being heard,
primarily because income inequality has increased in our societies, and
many justifiably feel that they are left behind. In Greece, we speak
from experience. We paid a heavy price for listening to them.
Everywhere in the world--in the United States, in Greece, in Europe--
social media is polarizing public debate. It is transforming the public
sphere into a modern-day version of the Tower of Babel, where we speak
different languages and we only listen to those who share the same
views with us.
There are three major forces that collectively bind together
successful democracies: social capital, and by that I mean the
extensive social networks, with high levels of trust, so admired by
Alexis de Tocqueville when he visited the United States in the 1830s;
strong institutions; and common stories that forge a unified national
identity. All three are being threatened today.
At the same time, authoritarian regimes are questioning our ability
to deliver prosperity for all our citizens. They are offering their
people a Faustian deal: You trade political freedom and individual
rights for high levels of growth and individual economic well-being.
Many, unfortunately, are willing to accept it.
These are some of the challenges we face today. That is why making
our democracies more resilient is such an important priority for our
generation.
I wish I had the answers to all these complicated questions. But I
think I know where to start.
We need to strengthen our democratic institutions to address the root
causes of the anger and distrust of our citizens.
We need to tackle income inequalities without losing the dynamism of
our open economies.
We need to reform social media so that it becomes less socially
corrosive. And we need to train our young people to seize the
opportunities of democratic citizenship in this new age.
And maybe a dive into our shared historical past would be of
particular use. James Madison knew that democracies can be threatened
by the ``turbulency and weakness of unruly passions.'' That is why
insulating decisionmaking from the emotions of the moment, while still
holding democratic leaders accountable on election day, was one of his
major preoccupations.
Madison was clearly inspired by Pericles, who knew that democracy had
a dark side that, if left unrestrained, could lead to its downfall.
Thucydides had Pericles say of ancient Athens:
We are a free democracy, but we obey our laws, more
especially those who protect the weak, and the unwritten laws
whose transgression brings shame.
Every time we gaze in wonder at the Parthenon frieze--half of which,
unfortunately, still sits in the British Museum rather than the
Acropolis Museum where it belongs--we are reminded of the glory of a
thriving democracy. Thirty years after the Parthenon was constructed,
democracy in Athens was no more.
Reinventing democracy to fit the challenges of the 21st century may
sound like a tall order, but this is the mission of our generation. And
I am certain we will accomplish it.
Esteemed Members of Congress, let me conclude by making a special
reference to the one unshakeable bond that will always bind our two
countries together: the Greek-American community.
It is a special moment to see so many of you here with us today. Over
the past 120 years, your country has warmly welcomed, encouraged, and
supported the waves of immigrants who came to the United States in
search of a better life, not to mention the students like me who spent
7 years studying in American universities.
Those who sailed to this country were not philosophers and poets like
their noble ancestors. For the most part, they were simple laborers,
and they eagerly took any work that they could.
But no matter how uneducated the Greeks, or how menial their work,
they would typically apply themselves with great determination and
embrace any chance to prosper in life and educate their children. They
offered them a brighter future, fulfilling the solemn duty that every
generation should be able to live a better life than the previous one.
They experienced the American Dream but never forgot where they came
from.
Today, the Greeks who live in the United States and the 3 million
Americans who identify themselves as Greeks include some of the most
respected leaders in the arts, science, education, medicine, the
judiciary, and, of course, politics.
Modern visionaries like Nicholas Negroponte and Albert Bourla, John
Cassavetes and Elia Kazan, Jeffrey Evgenidis and George Pelekanos,
Alexander Payne and Tom Hanks, and, of course, Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Six of them are in this Congress. One of them, my friend Mike
Dukakis, ran for President of the United States.
I think one of the reasons Greeks were accepted in America so readily
lies in the fact that the values of America and Greek values have so
much in common. One of the qualities that Greeks value the most is
``sophrosyne,'' a word best translated as ``self-control, temperance,
and harmony.''
The ancient Greeks thought arrogance, extremism, and excess the worst
threats to democracy. ``For man,'' Aristotle wrote, ``life according to
reason is best and most pleasant, since reason more than anything else
is man.''
That reason tells me that we Greeks and Americans have a lot more to
contribute as custodians of democracy, that government of the people,
by the people, for the people shall thrive again.
I bring you here today the pledge of the Greek people that we stand
together with the people of the United States whenever and wherever
necessary to ensure that the hopes our ancestors bequeathed to the
world 25 centuries ago will endure and the dream of freedom for every
human being on this planet will never die.
Long live the friendship between Greece and the United States of
America.
Thank you, ``efcharisto.'' Thank you very much.
(Applause, the Members rising.)
At 11 o'clock and 56 minutes a.m., His Excellency Kyriakos
Mitsotakis, Prime Minister of the Hellenic Republic, accompanied by the
committee of escort, retired from the Hall of the House of
Representatives.
The Assistant to the Sergeant at Arms escorted the invited guest from
the Chamber:
The Acting Dean of the Diplomatic Corps.
____________________