The Hellenic Navy (HN) (Greek: Πολεμικό Ναυτικό, Polemikó Naftikó, abbreviated ΠΝ) is the naval force of Greece, part of the Greek Armed Forces. The modern Greek navy has its roots in the naval forces of various Aegean Islands, which fought in the Greek War of Independence. During the periods of monarchy (1833–1924 and 1936–1973) it was known as the Royal Navy (Βασιλικόν Ναυτικόν, Vasilikón Naftikón, abbreviated ΒΝ).The total displacement of all the navy's vessels is approximately 150,000 tons.The motto of the Hellenic Navy is "Μέγα το της Θαλάσσης Κράτος" from Thucydides' account of Pericles' oration on the eve of the Peloponnesian War. This has been roughly translated as "Great is the country that controls the sea". The Hellenic Navy's emblem consists of an anchor in front of a crossed Christian cross and trident, with the cross symbolizing Greek Orthodoxy, and the trident symbolizing Poseidon, the god of the sea in Greek mythology. Pericles' words are written across the top of the emblem. "The navy, as it represents a necessary weapon for Greece, should only be created for war and aim to victory."...............The Hellenic Merchant Marine refers to the Merchant Marine of Greece, engaged in commerce and transportation of goods and services universally. It consists of the merchant vessels owned by Greek civilians, flying either the Greek flag or a flag of convenience. Greece is a maritime nation by tradition, as shipping is arguably the oldest form of occupation of the Greeks and a key element of Greek economic activity since the ancient times. Nowadays, Greece has the largest merchant fleet in the world, which is the second largest contributor to the national economy after tourism and forms the backbone of world shipping. The Greek fleet flies a variety of flags, however some Greek shipowners gradually return to Greece following the changes to the legislative framework governing their operations and the improvement of infrastructure.

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This is a bilingual blog in English and / or Greek and you can translate any post to any language by pressing on the appropriate flag....Note that there is provided below a scrolling text with the 30 recent posts...Αυτό είναι ένα δίγλωσσο blog στα Αγγλικά η/και στα Ελληνικά και μπορείτε να μεταφράσετε οποιοδήποτε ποστ σε οποιαδήποτε γλώσσα κάνοντας κλικ στη σχετική σημαία. Σημειωτέον ότι παρακάτω παρέχεται και ένα κινούμενο κείμενο με τα 30 πρόσφατα ποστς....This is a bilingual blog in English and / or Greek and you can translate any post to any language by pressing on the appropriate flag....Note that there is provided below a scrolling text with the 30 recent posts...Αυτό είναι ένα δίγλωσσο blog στα Αγγλικά η/και στα Ελληνικά και μπορείτε να μεταφράσετε οποιοδήποτε ποστ σε οποιαδήποτε γλώσσα κάνοντας κλικ στη σχετική σημαία. Σημειωτέον ότι παρακάτω παρέχεται και ένα κινούμενο κείμενο με τα 30 πρόσφατα ποστς.........

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

UK -Northern Ireland sharing talks....[ 600 ]

Northern Ireland power sharing talks end in tension

Prime Minister Gordon Brown said a crunch summit to save Northern Ireland's power sharing government had failed to secure a settlement but insisted a "pathway" to an agreement had been laid.

BBC Published: 2:28PM GMT 27 Jan 2010

Gordon Brown misses Commons appearance for Northern Ireland talks

Prime Minister Gordon Brown with his Irish counterpart Brian Cowen : PA

Speaking alongside Irish premier Brian Cowen, Mr Brown said three days of intensive negotiations between the main parties had seen progress made on the row surrounding stalled devolution of policing powers.

But he said the party leaders had now been given 48 hours to try to hammer out a deal. If they fail to do so, Mr Brown said, the British and Irish governments would publish their own plans for moving the process forward.

Mr Brown said: "We believe we have proposals that make for a reasonable deal on devolution of policing and justice, we believe we have proposals that make for a reasonable settlement on all the outstanding issues."

But he added in regard to the 48-hour deadline: "If we judge that insubstantial progress has been made we will publish our own proposals."

Sinn Fein has threatened serious consequences for the devolved administration without a swift transfer of law and order powers.

But the DUP has insisted it will only give the go-ahead when other outstanding issues, such as the management of controversial parades, are resolved.

Moments before the premiers wound up proceedings, tensions between the two main parties apparently reached boiling point at a round table plenary session, with Sinn Fein's Martin McGuinness venting his anger that the summit had failed to secure a settlement.

Afterwards Mr Brown said he believed proposals to devolve policing powers to Stormont in May could be brought to a vote in the Assembly as early as March.

But he said the other issues had to be settled.

Mr Brown said: "The importance of these decisions for the future of Northern Ireland cannot be under-estimated. With leadership and courage they can be achieved."

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