III
119THCONGRESS
1
STSESSION S. RES. 141
Recognizing the 204th anniversary of the independence of Greece and
celebrating democracy in Greece and the United States.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
MARCH26, 2025
Mr. B
OOKER(for himself, Mr. BARRASSO, Mr. VANHOLLEN, Mr. RICKETTS,
Mr. S
CHUMER, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. MARKEY, Ms. LUMMIS, Mr. COONS, Mr.
K
AINE, Mr. JUSTICE, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Mr. JOHNSON,
Ms. D
UCKWORTH, Mr. REED, Mr. BENNET, Mr. TILLIS, Mr. SCOTTof
Florida, and Mrs. S
HAHEEN) submitted the following resolution; which
was considered and agreed to
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the 204th 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 rep-
resentative democracy of the United States;
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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 . . .
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 strug-
gle 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
abolitionists Dr. Samuel Gridley Howe and 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 hu-
manitarian 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 the Soviet Union;
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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’’
and ‘‘no longer will we say that Greeks fight like heroes,
but that heroes fight like Greeks’’;
Whereas hundreds of thousands of Greeks 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 and has been a member of the North Atlan-
tic Treaty Organization since 1952;
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 this support was bolstered in the United States-
Greece Defense and Interparliamentary Partnership Act
of 2021 (subtitle B of title XIII of Public Law 117–81),
establishing a 3+1 Interparliamentary Group to discuss
the expansion of cooperation in areas of common concern;
Whereas the United States maintains close bilateral coopera-
tion with Greece on security, energy, and other shared
priorities, including the commitment to security coopera-
tion that led to the conclusion of a Mutual Defense Co-
operation Agreement, which was updated in 2019 and
2021, in order to enhance defense ties between the two
countries and promote stability in the broader region;
Whereas the ongoing United States-Greece Strategic Dia-
logue reflects Greece’s importance to the United States
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as a geostrategic partner, especially in the Eastern Medi-
terranean and Balkans, and as an important NATO ally;
Whereas, on November 13, 2023, the United States and
Greece signed a memorandum of understanding to ad-
vance energy security and cooperation in the Western
Balkans;
Whereas regular high-level engagement between the Govern-
ments of the United States and Greece continued
through 2024 and into 2025, during which both govern-
ments reaffirmed the strategic importance of the United
States-Greece relationship and pledged to continue and
increase cooperation based on shared values and inter-
ests;
Whereas, in the framework of the fifth United States-Greece
Strategic Dialogue, on February 9, 2024, Greece became
the 35th country to sign onto the Artemis Accords, af-
firming its commitment to a peaceful, sustainable, and
transparent cooperation in space;
Whereas the Government and people of Greece actively par-
ticipate 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 has shown a strong commitment to meeting
NATO defense spending obligations, recognizing the need
for a more robust European pillar within NATO;
Whereas Greece remains an integral part of the European
Union and a current non-permanent member of the
United Nations Security Council;
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Whereas the Greek-American community has greatly contrib-
uted to American society and has helped forge the strong
ties between the United States and Greece;
Whereas the Governments 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; and
Whereas it is proper and desirable for the United States to
celebrate March 25, 2025, Greek Independence Day, with
the people of Greece and to reaffirm the democratic prin-
ciples from which those two great countries were founded:
Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate— 1
(1) extends sincere congratulations and best 2
wishes to the people of Greece as they celebrate the 3
204th anniversary of the independence of Greece; 4
(2) expresses support for the principles of 5
democratic governance to which the people of Greece 6
are committed; 7
(3) commends the Greek-American community 8
for its contributions to the United States and its 9
role as a bridge between the two countries; 10
(4) notes the important role that Greece has 11
played in the wider European region and in the com-12
munity of nations since gaining its independence 13
204 years ago; 14
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(5) appreciates the ever-stronger bilateral rela-1
tionship, based on shared values and interests, in-2
cluding the important energy and security partner-3
ship that exists between the United States and 4
Greece, and the important role that Greece plays in 5
bolstering European energy security; and 6
(6) appreciates Greece as a valued NATO ally 7
and its critical role in ensuring regional stability. 8
Æ
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