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.Blogger Tips and Tricks
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.........

Friday, October 8, 2010

Red Roma for the “Sino-Italian friendship.” ..[ 1855 ]

Berlusconi paints the town red for China’s leader

Eric Reguly.,Rome— Globe and Mail,., Friday, October 8, 2010 9:25AM EDT

Italy decked out the Colosseum in red lights Thursday night in honour of a visit by Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao. The Chinese letters read 'Sino-Italian friendship.” | Alessandro Bianci/Reuters


The grimy facade of the Colosseum was bathed in a pleasing red light on Thursday night. Big white characters, obviously Chinese, were beamed onto the stadium’s upper reaches. They read: “Sino-Italian friendship.” 

The usual throng of tourists at the Colosseum must have wondered what was g oing on. Had the Chinese government bought ad rights to Europe’s most famous building? In fact it was Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s way of welcoming Wen Jiabao, his Chinese counterpart, to Rome. The red was meant to be a communist red in his honour. 
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Mr. Wen wasn’t exactly a tourist, though it’s assumed Mr. Berlusconi took him for a spin around the Colosseum. The real agenda was investment and trade and possibly -- though this was not stated -- turning Italy into China’s European beachhead. We do know that the duo vowed to double bilateral trade to $200-billion (U.S.) by 2015, including investment flows.

Mr. Berlusconi has been derided in the international press as a party boy, womanizer and hopelessly conflicted businessman-politician -- he controls Italy’s largest commercial broadcaster as well as the state broadcaster. He has been hounded by corruption allegations throughout his political career. He tries to change the law to shield himself from court cases and his government is on the verge of falling apart.
But the one thing he has done well, it appears, is court foreign investors -- and never mind if a few of them are not the kind of guys you’d want to see dating your daughter. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is among his best friends and girl-crazed Libyan strongman Muammar al-Gaddafi is a regular visitor to Rome. Both Russia and oil-rich Libya are boosting their investments in Italy which, after more than 2,000 years of wear and tear, desperately needs some buffing up. Certainly the debt-soaked Italian state is ill-equipped to do much more than keep the odd street clean.

The Chinese have signalled they are serious about Italy in the long run by spending heavily on infrastructure, notably ports. Hutchison Whampoa is investing €500-million in developing the port in Taranto, in the extreme south. A state-owned company is expanding the port of Naples, one of the Mediterranean’s most important container centres. Another Chinese company is negotiating to build a multi-billion-euro terminal just north of Rome. These ports and terminals, of course, will be important links in the supply chain that starts in Northern Europe and ends somewhere in China.

What will Italy get in return? Presumably equal access to the vast Chinese market. Fiat, led by Italian-Canadian CEO Sergio Marchionne, is keen to expand sales and manufacturing in China. Italian oil and green-energy companies would love greater access to China, as would Italy’s surprisingly large banks and insurers.
Italy, of course, would like something else from China -- a steady buyer of its bonds. Italy is one of the world’s most heavily indebted countries and rolling over its bonds couldn’t be done without healthy buying interest from foreign investors.

Mr. Wen earlier this week said China will continue to buy Greek bonds, signalling support for euro-zone debt. If the Chinese will buy junked-out Greek debt, you can assume they would be happy to load up on higher-rated Italian debt.
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