III 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 34 

Recognizing the 200th anniversary of the independence of Greece and 

celebrating democracy in Greece and the United States. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 4, 2021 

Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself and Mr. BARRASSO) submitted the following 

resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Recognizing the 200th anniversary of the independence of 

Greece and celebrating democracy in Greece and the 

United States. 

Whereas the people of ancient Greece developed the concept 

of democracy, in which the supreme power to govern was 

vested in the people; 

Whereas the founding fathers of the United States, many of 

whom read Greek political philosophy in the original 

Greek language, drew heavily on the political experience 

and philosophy of ancient Greece in forming the representative democracy of the United States; 

Whereas Petros Mavromichalis, the former Commander in 

Chief of Greece and a founder of the modern Greek state, 

said to the citizens of the United States in 1821, ‘‘It is 

in your land that liberty has fixed her abode and . . . in 


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•SRES 34 IS 

imitating you, we shall imitate our ancestors and be 

thought worthy of them if we succeed in resembling 

you.’’; 

Whereas, in an October 21, 1823, letter to Greek scholar 

Adamantios Koraes discussing the ongoing Greek struggle for independence, Thomas Jefferson wrote that ‘‘[n]o 

people sympathise more feelingly than ours with the 

sufferings of your countrymen, none offer more sincere 

and ardent prayers to heaven for their success’’; 

Whereas, on January 19, 1824, in a speech in support of his 

resolution to send an American envoy to Greece amid its 

struggle for independence, then-Congressman Daniel 

Webster recognized ‘‘the struggle of an interesting and 

gallant people . . . contending against fearful odds, for 

being, and for the common privilege of human nature’’; 

Whereas individual American Philhellenes, including future 

abolitionist Dr. Samuel Gridley Howe, future abolitionist 

Jonathan Peckham Miller, and George Jarvis, traveled to 

Greece to fight alongside and provide aid to the Greek 

people in their struggle for independence; 

Whereas the people of the United States generously sent humanitarian assistance to the people of Greece during 

their struggle for independence, often through philhellene 

committees; 

Whereas Greece heroically resisted Axis forces at a crucial 

moment in World War II, forcing Adolf Hitler to change 

his timeline and delaying the attack on Russia; 

Whereas Winston Churchill said that ‘‘if there had not been 

the virtue and courage of the Greeks, we do not know 

which the outcome of World War II would have been’’ 


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•SRES 34 IS 

and ‘‘no longer will we say that Greeks fight like heroes, 

but that heroes fight like Greeks’’; 

Whereas hundreds of thousands of the people of Greece were 

killed during World War II; 

Whereas Greece consistently allied with the United States in 

major international conflicts throughout its history as a 

modern state; 

Whereas the United States and Greece reinforced their commitment to security cooperation by signing an updated 

Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreement on October 5, 

2019, that will expand defense ties between the two countries and promote stability in the region; 

Whereas the Prime Minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, 

visited the United States from January 5 to 8, 2020, and 

held meetings with members of Congress, including members of the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate, which demonstrated the continued vitality and significance of the United States-Greece relationship; 

Whereas a high-level review of the United States-Greece Strategic Dialogue took place in Greece on September 28, 

2020, which underscored Greece’s importance to the 

United States as a geostrategic partner in the Eastern 

Mediterranean and Balkans and as an important NATO 

ally; 

Whereas Greece is a strategic partner and ally of the United 

States in bringing political stability and economic development to the Balkan region, having invested billions of 

dollars in the countries of the region and having contributed more than $750,000,000 in development aid for the 

region; 


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•SRES 34 IS 

Whereas the government and people of Greece actively participate in peacekeeping and peace-building operations 

conducted by international organizations, including the 

United Nations, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, 

the European Union, and the Organization for Security 

and Co-operation in Europe; 

Whereas Greece remains an integral part of the European 

Union; 

Whereas the United States has demonstrated its support for 

the trilateral partnership of Greece, Israel, and Cyprus 

by enacting into law the Eastern Mediterranean Security 

and Energy Partnership Act of 2019 (title II of division 

J of Public Law 116–94) and through joint engagement 

with Greece, Israel, and Cyprus in the ‘‘3+1’’ format; 

Whereas Greece received worldwide praise for its extraordinary handling during the 2004 Olympic Games of more 

than 14,000 athletes and more than 2,000,000 spectators 

and journalists, a feat the Government and people of 

Greece handled efficiently, securely, and with hospitality; 

Whereas the Greek-American community has greatly contributed to American society and has helped forge the strong 

ties between the United States and Greece; 

Whereas the government and people of Greece and the 

United States are at the forefront of efforts to advance 

freedom, democracy, peace, stability, and human rights; 

Whereas those efforts and similar ideals have forged a close 

bond between the peoples of Greece and the United 

States; 

Whereas, in support of the Greece 2021 Committee established by the Government of Greece, the United States 

Mission in Greece has launched a campaign to celebrate 


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the bicentennial of the independence of Greece and the 

200 years of friendship between the United States and 

Greece; and 

Whereas it is proper and desirable for the United States to 

celebrate March 25, 2021, Greek Independence Day, with 

the people of Greece and to reaffirm the democratic principles from which those two great countries were founded: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) extends warm congratulations and best 

3 wishes to the people of Greece as they celebrate the 

4 200th anniversary of the independence of Greece; 

5 (2) expresses support for the principles of 

6 democratic governance to which the people of Greece 

7 are committed; 

8 (3) commends the Greek-American community 

9 for its contributions to the United States and its 

10 role as a bridge between the two countries; 

11 (4) notes the important role that Greece has 

12 played in the wider European region and in the com13 munity of nations since gaining its independence 

14 200 years ago; and 

15 (5) commends the critical role Greece plays in 

16 promoting stability in the Eastern Mediterranean 

17 and Western Balkans. 

Æ 


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