Greece Marks OXI Day with Spectacular Military Parade

Greece marked “OXI Day”, the anniversary of when the nation said “No” to the fascist aggression in 1940, with a military parade in the center of the city of Thessaloniki on Saturday.

Military units, including armored vehicles, tanks, infantry, and special forces, marched in front of Katerina Sakellaropoulou, the President of the Hellenic Republic.

Formations of Hellenic Air Force fighters flew over the city, offering an amazing spectacle.

The newly acquired French-made Rafale fighter jets and the Marder 1A3 armored combat and TTOA M1117 reconnaissance vehicles caught the eye of the public at this year’s OXI Day event in Thessaloniki.

However, it is not only Rafales that flew across the sky. The legendary Spitfire MJ755 aircraft impressed while the parade was accompanied by a demonstration with “Zeus” single aircraft air demonstration team.

Greece will continue to highlight its national rights and remain a pillar of stability and peace in our wider region,” Sakellaropoulou said after the conclusion of the parade in Thessaloniki.

“Today, the anniversary of the heroic “OXI”, we honor those who fought and sacrificed for our freedom and reflect on our debt to them. The Armed Forces, inspired by the spirit that united the Greeks in the decisive moments of our history, defend our non-negotiable rights.

“In the turbulent and fluid international environment we live in, Greece will continue to highlight its national rights and remain a pillar of stability and peace in our wider region,” Sakellaropoulou stressed.

Earlier, she laid a wreath at the premises of the Army Corps of Thessaloniki.

OXI Day school parade in Athens

Hundreds of students from various schools in Athens marched in front of the monument to the ‘Unknown Soldier’, on Amalia Avenue. The sunny day brought thousands of citizens to the center of Athens to watch the students’ parade.

Most cities in Greece also hold student parades.

OXI Day on October 28, 1940, was the moment Greeks were united as one leaving behind everything that divided them on any level. This is the reason Greece, unlike any other country in the world, celebrates the day it entered the war instead of the end of WWII.

The has become one of the two National Days, along with March 25th the day the Greek Revolution against the Ottoman Turks was declared. On these days there is a parade of the Hellenic Armed Forces, in Thessaloniki on October 28th and in Athens on March 25th.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis attended the Doxology at the Holy Metropolitan Church of the Assumption of the Virgin, in Chania. Αfterwards he made the following statement:

“Today is a day of memory, honor and pride, and our thoughts go back 83 years, to those who said the big “NO”, to the young children who fought in the mountains of Pindus and Albania. We primarily honor those who never returned to their families, to a warm home or even to a decent funeral.

“Eighty-three years later, our country stands as a pillar of stability in a troubled neighborhood. Our Armed Forces, strong, guarantee our deterrent power.”