Θα επιμένουμε ("We will persevere.") | |||||||
Capital | Chalkis | ||||||
Largest city | Iraklion | ||||||
Other cities | Sparti, Nicosia, Kérkyra, Ródos, Ermoupoli | ||||||
Language official |
Greek | ||||||
others | Turkish, Albanian, Bulgarian | ||||||
Ethnic Group | 83% Greek, 8% Turkish, 5% Slavic, 3% Albanian, 1% other | ||||||
Government | Federal Parliamentary Republic | ||||||
Legislature | Parliament | ||||||
President | |||||||
Speaker of Parliament | Spilios Spiliotopoulos | ||||||
Area | 131,990 km2 | ||||||
Population | 5,553,304 | ||||||
Established | 1994 (Confederation) 2009 (Federation) | ||||||
Currency | Drachma (pegged to the Nordic Crown at 1:1) | ||||||
Organizations | Atlantic Defense Community, Black Sea Accords |
The Hellenic Federation (Ellinikí Omospondía), formerly the Hellenic Confederation (Ellinikí Synomospondía) and usually called Greece in English, is the successor to the Greek state that largely collapsed in the aftermath of the Third World War. The Federation's capital is Chalkis on Euboea, with some functions still carried out on the island of Skyros, which served as the interim capital for many years.
Greece is structured as a federation. The Hellenic Republic itself, a direct continuation of the prewar state, is today merely one of the member states; both it and the other members enjoy wide self-government. It has a democratic constitution, but under the surface there is an authoritarian streak, especially at the state level in some of its members, and toward non-Greek ethnic minorities living within the territory it controls.
History[]
- Also see the history of the individual states: Morea, Hellenic Republic, Dodecanese Republic, Delian League, Heptanesa, Cyprus, Agion Oros, Thrace Reclamation Zone
Doomsday[]
On the outbreak of World War III, the fledgling Hellenic Republic was not considered a serious threat by the USSR. In 1981 the new socialist government of the PASOK party had removed American nuclear missiles from the country. In exchange for this, Moscow had guaranteed the country's safety in the event of nuclear war. Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou had in fact planned to withdraw from both NATO and the EEC. Fear of Turkey had pursuaded Papandreou to remain in the alliance, though he did remove Greek forces from its command structure. The government was confident that the country would be safe even as tension worsened between the Soviet Union and America.
However, when the worst happened, Greece was not spared. The first wave of missiles bypassed it, but the second and third round of attacks hit Greek targets. Greece was still a NATO member, and most likely the Soviets wanted to deny the West the use of its strategic ports and bases. Five sites were attacked: Athens, the capital and military headquarters; Thessaloniki, headquarters of the Hellenic navy; Patra, headquarters of the Ionian fleet; Larissa, headquarters of the Hellenic Air Force; and Souda Bay on Crete, location of a major NATO naval base.
The short respite did allow members of PASOK to evacuate Athens before it was struck. As the situation grew dire and word came of a land invasion from Bulgaria, Papandreou ordered government operations to be moved to Rhodes. A gathering order was issued for all surviving Hellenic troops and ships to come to the island. Some ships and planes escaped the strikes due to advance warning and gathered at Rhodes, but a great deal of Hellenic military hardware near these five targets was destroyed or disabled. The land invasion began but faltered as Bulgaria and the USSR began to collapse themselves.
Not long after the attacks, the regime of Enver Hoxha in Albania collapsed on itself as its people began to starve. A flood of Albanian refugees began to drift south, joining the displaced Greeks already in motion in search of food and safety.
The fragments of Greece[]
While the Greek government managed to reestablish control in Rhodes, social order was breaking down throughout the country. Control was difficult due to a lack of resources, infrequent communication, political polarization, and a general climate of mistrust. Corfu and the Ionian Islands were functioning as a basically independent state by 1985. The islands of the central Aegean formed an informal cooperative that would later be dubbed the Delian League, after the Athenian-led league from the Classical era.
In the Peloponnese, in response to the perceived failure of the left-wing PASOK, along with fear of Albanian refugees, a hardline nationalist movement co-opted or brushed aside the local authorities. A new state emerged calling itself the Provisional Government of Morea, using a colloquial name for the peninsula that dates to the medieval period.
In 1984, the national government moved from Rhodes to Heraklion once it was determined that eastern Crete was safe from the fallout of the Souda Bay blast, and Heraklion seemed to be Greece's largest surviving city. On Rhodes, the government left behind a newly-organized regional government that soon was also operating with virtual independence. This Dodecanese state was also now supporting some of the nearby Turkish villages that had been cut off from any national government.
In the north, the only semblance of order came from the monasteries of Agion Oros (Mount Athos), who began organizing humanitarian services and a police force for the displaced-person camps that were forming across the regional border in Chalkidiki. A pseudo-state ruled by monks was beginning to develop.
Crete and Morea[]
In the next few years, the Hellenic forces became more organized and began their first attempts to assert control of the mainland. But they faced an immediate obstacle in Morea, whose provisional government did not want to align itself with the failed republic.
After some clashes with Morean forces, Hellenic forces decided to send expeditions up the eastern coast of Greece to establish a presence in less hostile areas. Stations were established along the Central Greek coast with the goal of eventually outflanking and overpowering the insurgents in Morea. But by pulling out of the Peloponnese, the Republic simply emboldened Morea. By 1989 the regime controlled the entire peninsula, though its hold on the mountainous north remained tenuous.
Confederation[]
By 1993, it was becoming clear that Greece was not going to be reunited by force: both Morea and the Hellenic Republic were losing too many people in the ongoing fighting, only compounding the losses from the nuclear war. Some on both sides began to seek a peaceful solution. Leaders from the Aegean islands acted as mediators, trying to arrange a new understanding. By 1994, they were ready with an agreement that would define the new Greece in the postwar era.
The Ermoupoli Accords, signed in 1994, created a new Confederation of Greece. The Hellenic Republic and its territory would be but one member, together with Morea and the three autonomous island-states that had formed in the past decade: the Delian League, Heptanesa, and the Dodecanese Republic. The Confederation would be loosely governed, really just a military and economic alliance of the five surviving Greek states. Each state remained independent, but the Confederation could enact joint military operations and conduct foreign policy.
The island of Skyros was made the capital and headquarters of the new organization. It was made a neutral district with a special status in the confederation, later expanded to cover all the islands of the Sporades. The earlier Greek national symbols would not do as symbols of the Confederation, since the Republic was still using them for itself; so a new coat of arms was designed, adding the letter Beta to each quarter. This old Byzantine symbol was meant to suggest the once and future greatness of the nation.
Around the Mediterranean[]
The Confederation was a major milestone for the new Greece. Much remained to be done. Almost everybody desired the restoration of the entire country, but most of the interior remained beyond the reach of any government. Still, it was a major accomplishment and it equipped the Greek states to move beyond mere survival and look to the surrounding region.
Turkey had tumbled into utter chaos and death since the nuclear attacks. The strongest successor government, the Sultanate of Turkey, still had little presence in the Aegean. Thrace, crippled by attacks on Istanbul and Edirne, had been severely depopulated by starvation, disease, violence, and subsequent emigration to safer areas.
The Greek and Turkish governments first made contact with each other around this time, regarding one another with wariness. Neither quite seemed legitimate enough to trust as a former NATO ally, and each was likewise under the influence of nationalists who were more disposed to resume the old pre-NATO hostility between the two countries.
The Moreans, and others who shared their mindset, advocated establishing an official Greek foothold in Thrace to claim land that they regarded as lost to the Turks centuries earlier. In 1995, an expedition established a base near the town of Ereğlisi on the coast of the Sea of Marmara. The town had mostly been abandoned, but the existing harbor and residences would be ideal for a staging ground for further operations. As aid workers and troops moved in, they began to use the old Greek name for the place, Heraclea.
The Bulgarian state of Rhodope contested this move. It was also interested in Thrace and desired that it remain open for future exploitation. Clashes over this territory stayed small - neither side could mount a big campaign - but the threat of violence prevented Heraclea from growing very much; its zone of control closely hugged the coast on both sides of the Dardanelles. The discovery of a thriving community of Greek survivors in Xanthi in western Thrace provided a convenient base of operations that helped make the Thracian operation permanent.
Further east, in Cyprus, things were even more grim. After two nuclear attacks on the island's British bases, the island had been torn apart by an internecine war between the Greeks and the Turks. The Greeks, with their much greater numbers, had come out on top and exacted horrible retribution on the Turkish men, women and children in the north of the island.
The Cypriot survivors now asked to join Greece's new Confederation. Leaders on Skyros were ambivalent. Unification with Cyprus would mean propping up a war-torn island and joining forces with people complicit in an ethnic cleansing. But by the late 90s, support swung in favor of unification, and Cyprus became a member state.
Toward the Federation[]
As the states of the Confederation cooperated ever more closely in the 2000s, questions arose about the future of Greece. Would it be a decentralized alliance forever? Some now suggested a tighter federal model, others the full restoration of the centralized Hellenic Republic. Some even more ambitious and outlandish plans were suggested, from a restored Byzantine Empire to a union of syndicalist workers' councils.
On 11 January 2008, local leaders gathered at Skyros to attempt to form a consensus on Greece's future. Attendees rejected as unrealistic the idea of restoring the Hellenic Republic over the entire country, instead recommending modest reforms to produce a new federal state. The federation would have complete control over Greece's armies and military policy. But each member state would remain distinct and autonomous, free to decide their own forms of government and domestic policy. When the Skyros conference ended, its members organized a series of "People's Assemblies" in their home states to further consider the question. Finally, the governing committee in Skyros directed that each state would hold a binding vote on the question.
Although some Greek states, most notably Morea, did not yet conduct regular elections, they agreed to submit the question to a popular referendum. It was planned for December 2009 asking the question: "Do you support the reformation of the Confederation of Greece into a unified Federal State?" Morea grudgingly went along with the plan but campaigned heavily for the "No" side.
At the same time, citizens of Cyprus were asked the question: "If the Confederation of Greece reforms into a Federal State, would you desire statehood in this new nation?" In the event of a "Yes" vote, both would be granted equal status with the members of the Confederation themselves.
Results[]
Do you support the reformation of the Confederation of Greece into a unified Federal State? | ||
State | Yes | No |
State of Morea | 57% | 43% |
Hellenic Republic | 74% | 26% |
Delian League | 81% | 19% |
Dodecanese Republic | 79% | 21% |
Mount Athos | 91% | 9% |
Heptanesa | 62% | 38% |
If the Confederation of Greece reforms into a Federal State, would you desire statehood in this new nation? | ||
Territory | Yes | No |
Cyprus | 87% | 13% |
Even in Morea, much of the populace believed that reunification might pave the way for greater freedom and prosperity, and that the states were stronger together. Upon the victory of the "Yes" vote, the Hellenic Federation was declared. A constitutional convention was scheduled for March to establish the form that the new state would take.
National Convention[]
A convention opened on Skyros with representatives from each member state. Since Cyprus had voted to join the federation, it was granted the same representation as the earlier states. The convention produced a new federal constitution that tightened the existing structures, giving the Hellenic Republic the same status as the other member states.
Under the new constitution, the Federation now has power over foreign policy and defense, as well as some say in economic policy. It has limited taxation powers and the right to establish federal corporations for essential services such as utilities and transportation, which must be operated not for profit.
The separate members would continue to operate as autonomous states, following the political traditions that they had developed since 1983. The territory directly under the former government's authority - at the time consisting of Crete, Euboea, and a small stretch of the mainland coast - would continue to call itself the Hellenic Republic and use the old Greek flag. The federal government would meanwhile use a new flag, an inversion of the cross that Greece had used formerly, surmounted with the shield that had been created for the Confederation.
It was expected that more of the mainland would come under more reliable control, and most of the reclaimed land was planned to be put under direct federal control, at least at first. The constitution then provided for the creation or admission of new autonomous states, and for adding territory to existing ones, with the consent of the national government.
The Sicily War[]
- Main article: Second Sicily War
From October 2009 to December 2010, Greece fought in the Second Sicily War alongside the ADC and API. Despite widespread destruction in Heptanesa, and a failed invasion of Lecce Province in southern Italy that first October, Greece and its allies eventually came out on top. A second, successful invasion of Lecce made the Sicilians seek peace in the end.
Despite a desire by Greece to keep fighting, the ADC agreed to the Sicilian request for a ceasefire that December. In the end, Greece kept a concession over the areas seized in the second invasion, where it would establish a series of military bases.
The Epirote War[]
- Main article: Epirote War
Greece's expansion in Thrace, Cyprus, and now Italy, together with ongoing reclamation of the Greek mainland, fueled a desire to expand even further. Revanchism became the order of the day. On January 25th, 2012, following a diplomatic deal nine days earlier with the Macedonian government giving free rein in exchange for moving troops away from their mutual border, Greek forces moved into the battered and disunited region of southern Albania. Heptanesa led the push toward war, having called for it since the establishment of the Federal Republic.
The territory of Gjirokastër was secured on the 5th of February, and Himarë on the 14th. The territory of Muzaka, also known as Ersekë (or in Greek, Erseka), proved more durable and lasted until the 29th. Rather than surrender outright, the town's rulers made a deal to join the Federal Republic as an autonomous state. For the foreseeable future they will be under the governance of an administrative team, under General Fotios Krevaikasv of the Greek Air Force, recently a candidate for Secretary General of the Atlantic Defense Community, to organize the government of the area.
Isolation and Rebuilding[]
The unprovoked war in Albania sparked a wave of nationalistic enthusiasm in Greece, but it was a major scandal elsewhere, especially among Greece's allies in the Atlantic Defense Community. The ADC had been created largely to prevent such wars in the Mediterranean. In a vote in late 2012, the Atlantic Council passed a resolution stating that Greece should to turn all its occupied territory over to the Albanian government; Greece ignored this on the grounds that the Albanian government had not securely controlled that land to begin with. The issue caused a rift in the ADC that ended with an impasse. The Atlantic allies could not do without Greece, commanding such a strategic spot to the east of Italy. Greece could not do without its allies, either. Arguments within the alliance dragged on for years.
Greece was isolated diplomatically, but its internal economy and society continued to develop. Most important was the steady progress incorporating small communities of survivors in Central Greece and Thessaly. Trikala, largely abandoned since the late 80s, was re-founded in 2014 and made the center of a new regional administration serving the plains of western Thessaly. The mountainous terrain of the Pindos remained wild, but Greek security forces were now able to patrol it more regularly, solidifying the Federation's claim to the region.
Most of this reclaimed land was administered as federal territory, but some new autonomous states were also added. Agion Oros finally reformed its quasi-theocracy in 2012, its territory dividing between a monastic state on the mountain itself, and a Republic of Chalkidiki under civil administration.
Plans had begun already in 2011 to relocate the federal capital. Skyros, as a neutral site, was suited as the capital of a loose confederation, but a centralizing federation required a more substantial city. Parliament approved the city of Chalkis on Euboea. It was part of the Hellenic Republic but in an outlying part of it. Euboea's population had been greatly reduced in the 80s and 90s, and now its main city was a prime spot for rebuilding. A precinct was set aside in Chalkis for federal buildings; Skyros and its neighbors were reorganized as another autonomous state, the Sporades.
It was also announced that five bids had been received for the first major construction, the presidential palace. While the firms themselves were not revealed, information leaked from the committee in charge of choosing the winner shows that the bids were from firms in the Nordic Union, Alpine Confederation, Singapore, and the ANZC Commonwealth.
On January 6th, 2012, the winner was announced, and revealed to be a proposal by the firm from the Alpine Confederation. The firms that had entered were also revealed. The committee, however, declined to reveal exactly why they had chosen the winner, though speculation did exist, that proposals of the ANZC and Finnish firms were rejected for being hard to defend, the proposal of the Singapore firm for not being at all Greek, and that it had come down to the Swedish and Alpine firms, with the Alpine firm coming out on top because the Swedish firm's proposal was too grand and expensive.
Construction started on the 20th on land overlooking Vourkou Park, a neighborhood that was being rebuilt as a federal precinct. The transition to the new capital was gradual but mostly complete by 2015.
The success of Greek internal policy contrasted with the country's precarious international situation without the ADC's support. In 2016 Sicily compains about the abuses perpertated by the Greeks to the local population and the refusal to concede a referendum for deciding the future of the area. Greece had already pledged to do this but had given no deadline. In order to defend its Italian "heel-hold," Greece diverted forces from its own interior to Lecce. Soon it was clear that without these forces, order was breaking down both in the Pindos, where travel became increasingly dangerous, and in the north, where Macedonia encroached further into Greece's claimed territory. Relations with Turkey also lurched from crisis to crisis, and there was tension even with the Black Sea allies Bulgaria and Romania over passage through the Dardanelles and Bosporus.
Rapprochement[]
A major bandit raid on Trikala in 2017 finally provoked the end of the nationalist-led era. More people became convinced that the nation's revanchist adventures had damaged Greece's standing and prevented it from tending to its own needs. A socialist-led coalition came to power later that year promising a policy of reconciliation with the Atlantic powers.
The government finally worked out a compromise solution for Albania. Greece would keep a very small portion of the Albanian coast: this area, directly opposite the island of Corfu, had a largely Greek population and had been administered as part of the Heptanese. The Albanian town of Erseka, which by now had been an autonomous state within the federation for five years, would also remain part of Greece. But the rest of the occupied south would be handed over to the Albanian government. A deadline was also set for the temporary occupation of Lecce: Greece agreed to hold a binding referendum on its status in 2020.
These moves, though not everything that the ADC had asked for, improved the diplomatic climate within the alliance. The government as promised moved security forces from the outlying areas to the interior, concentrating on keeping the newer settlements safe. The federal administration of Trikala ended and it was elevated to full statehood, highlighting the new government's pledge to focus on internal development and reclamation.
Government and Politics[]
The Hellenic Federal Republic is a democratic country organized along principles of asymmetric federalism, consisting of a central unitary republic and eleven autonomous states. Its capital is Chalkis on the island of Euboea, with some functions still carried out in the former capital, Skyros. Each of the autonomous states maintains its own form of government and laws, but the responsibility for foreign affairs and defense belongs to the Federal government.
Organization[]
The government of the Greek Federation is organized into three branches, the Executive, the Legislative, and the Judicial.
The new presidency was defined in the constitution of 2009, but the first national election in which all the states participated did not occur until October 28th, 2011. Before that, the powers of the head of state were temporarily invested in the Speaker of Parliament.
The Legislative Branch is defined as the Federal Parliament, currently housed in the House of Parliament in New Athens.
The Judicial Branch is the Areios Pagos (Άρειος Πάγος), the supreme court of the Greek Federation. It is the highest court of the Federation, but generally only deals with constitutional cases, as the States may have differing laws in regards to criminality.
Parliament and the Political Parties[]
The Federation Parliament is headed by its speaker, and currently contains three hundred seats, divided proportionately between the members of the Federation. These are elected or chosen in various ways by the Federation members, as per their own laws. For example, the Republic conducts regular elections; Morea still names delegates from the ruling party; Thrace sends the head of each of the top six parties. The total of representatives is expected to increase in number as the country grows in size and population.
The majority of representatives in the Parliament of the Greek Federation are from what can be considered to be national parties, but regional parties have a strong presence as well.
Parliament is led by the Speaker, who is the leader of the party which either forms the governing ministry outright, or leads the governing coalition. They are assisted by a varying number of deputy speakers, which at this time consist of the leaders of the other major parties in the governing coalition - it is likely in the event of a majority government that the leader of the opposition will hold this role. The President opens Parliament. While not able to dismiss the speaker or call new elections, the President's signature is required on legislation passed, and he can refuse to do so - but Parliament, with a two-thirds majority, can overrule him.
Following the end of the Nationalist led era in 2017, the first post nationalist-era elections occurred in October 16th of the same year, with the center-left Socialists (Panhellenic Socialist Movement) winning with 103 seats, and forming a coalition government with the Christian Democrats, the Greens and the Party of Peace, following a policy of reconciliation with the ADC.
In the next elections held in September 8th, 2023, the conservative right-wing New Democracy won with 125 seats and formed a coalition goverment with the Christian Democrats. 5 more moderate MP's of the Hellenism Movement left the party and joined New Democracy for the goverment of the coalition to be formed. These elections also saw the downfall of the pacifist and ecologist parties. The Party for Peace didn't manage to make an entry into the new parliament, replaced roughly by the "People's Party", which advocated for central control of all the Greek states and the disbandment of the Federation. Greece maintains its pro-ADC stance like the previous goverment did
Name | Political Views | Seats in Parliament | Power Base | Leader |
---|---|---|---|---|
New Democracy
(Νέα Δημοκρατία Néa Dimokratía) |
Conservatism, some support for a monarchy | 125 (130) | Heptanesa, Hellas, Dodecanese Republic | Dimitris Christofias |
Panhellenic Socialist Movement ( Πανελλήνιο Σοσιαλιστικό Κίνημα Panellínio Sosialistikó Kínima) |
Socialism, moderate left wing populism | 47 | Dodecanese Republic, Hellas, Cyprus | Spilios Spiliotopoulos |
Union of Royalists ( Ένωση Βασιλιστών Énosi Vasilistón) |
Favors the establishment of a Monarchy, Conservative-leaning | 14 | Thrace, Morea, Agion Oros | Antonis Paschalides |
Hellenism Movement (Κίνημα του Ελληνισμού Kínima tou Ellinismou) |
Extreme nationalism | 41 (36) | Morea, Cyprus, Thrace | George Kollias |
Orthodox Democratic League (Ορθόδοξη Δημοκρατική Ένωση Orthódoxi Dimokratikí Énosi) |
Christian Democracy | 22 | Agion Oros, Thrace | Ioannis Liapis |
People's Party
(Λαικό Κόμμα Laiko Komma) |
Central control, disbandment of the federal states, progressive | 11 | Hellas | Alexandros Dimitriadis |
Ecological Movement of Greece (Οικολογική Κίνηση της Ελλάδας Oikologikí Kínisi tis Elládas) |
Environmentalism, local democracy | 13 | Hellas, Delian League, Heptanesa, Thrace | George Tsekos |
Turkish League (Türk Ligi) |
Turkish Nationalism, demands return of Turkish areas and cession of parts of Cyprus to the Sultanate | 17 | Dodecanese Republic, Thrace | Mehmet Ali Talat |
Party for Justice and Integration (Partia për Drejtësi dhe Integrim) |
Albanian rights, Extreme anti-Macedonia views | 10 | Heptanesa, Erseka | Laert Vasili |
Administrative Divisions[]
The Federation of Greece is currently made up of a unitary republic, ten autonomous states, and one mandate.
State | Capital | |||||
1 | Hellenic Republic | Iraklion | ||||
2 | Morea | Sparti | ||||
3 | Heptanesa | Kerkyra | ||||
4 | Agion Oros | Karyes | ||||
5 | Delian League | Ermoupoli | ||||
6 | Dodecanese | Rhodes | ||||
7 | Cyprus | Lefkosia | ||||
8 | Sporades | Skyros | ||||
9 | Thrace (Greek zone) | Heraklea (Ereglisi) | ||||
10 | Erseka (Muzaka) | Erseka | ||||
11 | Chalkidiki | Polygyros | ||||
12 | Trikala | Trikala | ||||
13 | Federal Territories | Chalkis | ||||
A | Thrace (with Turkey, Rhodope, and Crimea) | Rumeli Feneri | ||||
B | Suez (with Egypt, Kemet, Israel, and the GSU) | Suez | ||||
International Relations[]
Greece is a member of the League of Nations, the Atlantic Defense Community, and the Black Sea Accords.
Turkey[]
Greece's expansionist projects dating back to the early 1990s have left a legacy of international conflict and tension. Particularly strained is the relationship with the Turkish states, in particular the Sultanate of Turkey, which has emerged as the strongest successor to the Turkish Republic.
A prominent cause of lingering tension is Greece's annexation of Turkish coastline in Thrace and adjacent to the Dodecanese, which formerly belonged to the Turkish provinces of Çanakkale, Tekirdağ, and Muğla. These areas still have a substantial Turkish population, including many who would gladly join Turkey if allowed to vote on the matter, something that Greece has never allowed.
A second problem is the crimes committed against the Turkish people of Cyprus in the 1980s. This was done well before Cyprus united with Greece, so the national government's usual line is to distance itself from those troubling times, when after all so many other horrible things were also going on. The Cypriots themselves frame their and their parents' actions as having been done in self-defense; and they also emphasize the chaos and confusion of the postwar years. Nevertheless, the fact is that horrible crimes were committed, and Greece later took advantage of the results and annexed the island; and most Turks are unimpressed by the attempts to explain this away.
In general Greece has sought to improve its relations with Turkey but has been unwilling either to give up territory or compensate surviving Cypriot refugees or their descendants - the main demands of the Turkish government. It has however sought to avoid escalating the conflict, for example declining to engage in formal relations with the breakaway states of eastern Turkey like Trabzon.
Macedonia[]
Relations are very frosty with Macedonia as well, this time because Macedonians have occupied portions of Greek territory near Thessaloniki. Turkey and Macedonia formed the Mediterranean Defense League in 2010, which caused great concern in Greece.
Albania[]
Albania also greatly resents Greece's invasion of 2012. It claims that the attack was an unjustified war of aggression, and Greece does not offer much to dispute that. In the agreement of 2018, Greece relinquished the territory that it occupied, except for Erseka and the coast directly opposite Corfu. It withdrew from the rest of Albania in a timely manner, leaving the Albanian government in control. But the war left a deep mistrust that is unlikely to heal soon.
Sicily[]
Sicily has been another rival for a long time and the Greeks, with the rest of the ADC, managed to eke out a narrow victory over them in 2011 in the Great Italian War. In the decade since then, Sicily and the ADC have taken pains to improve relations and reduce tensions in Italy and around the Mediterranean; Greece's nationalist-led government, by refusing to withdraw from southern Italy, had been an impediment to that. The current government has set a timetable for withdrawing from the Lecce Mandate but the old rivalry is still present.
Bulgaria and the Black Sea Accords[]
Despite some tension in the 80s and 90s over Thrace and the Black Sea straits, the Bulgarian successor state of Rhodope has been a partner of Greece for years. Some territorial disputes remain as Rhodope occupies Greek territory in western Thrace. Both countries have agreed to leave the final border to a referendum of the residents, though so far this has been delayed. Nevertheless, the issue has not gotten in the way of a productive regional partnership.
A formal alliance between the two was in the works throughout the later decade of the 2000s. Back-channel negotiations resulted in the signing of the Treaty of Skyros between the two parties, establishing an official alliance, on July 15th, 2011.
It was long believed that the Federation had been leading negotiations in Thrace towards a new diplomatic entity. The Crimean and Transylvanian consuls from their consulates in Heraklea, along with members of the Greek Parliament, were seen often at the offices of the Rhodopian Consulate in Vize. Diplomats from the Kuban and Don Republics, as well as the Partian state in Hungary, of Transylvania, were observed on occasion too.
On August 31st, 2011, the rumors were proven true when in Heraklea the Greek government, among others, signed the Black Sea Accords, forming the Black Sea League. In return for making economic investments, dropping a few trade barriers, and making a couple of defense guarantees, the Federation gained a little more security, and opened up more economic opportunities.
North Africa[]
Greece maintains friendly relations and peaceful trade with most of the nations of North Africa. Ties with Egypt are particularly strong, ever since Greece provided aid to survivors in the Nile delta in the wake of the bombing of Cairo.
Algeria is another long-time trading partner, and Greek diplomats and soldiers assisted the country's government when it re-established itself in 2003.
The Atlantic nations[]
Greece's relationship with the rest of the ADC has varied with time and the government in power. Nationalist-led governments emphasized unilateral action to gain territory, causing strain in the alliance, and Greece's membership was suspended between 2013 and 2018. Today, the prevailing consensus once again is that Greece is far better off inside the alliance than outside it; but there is also a strong faction insisting that the country doesn't need it. The nationalist parties now lean toward leaving the ADC entirely.
The ADC is a large community based largely in Europe's western fringe and the western Mediterranean, with Canada being an outlying member across the Atlantic. Slovenia and Croatia also joined in the 2010s, meaning that Greece is no longer the only eastern European member.
Economy[]
Culture[]
Military[]
Structure[]
Greece is a powerful military force in the Mediterranean. The Minister of Defense and Chief of the General Staff is Admiral Panagiotis Chinofotis, formerly the Chief of Naval Operations and thus Head of the Navy. The Ministry of Defense is one of the offices still located on Skyros.
Structurally, The Greek armed forces are composed of a Federal Military, and what is referred to as a "National Reserve" in each member of the Federation, and under the control of those governments, though subject to orders from the Federal government and the Federal Military, much like the American National Guard of Pre-Doomsday.
Many elements of the Greek Military were destroyed on Doomsday, yet many others were able to successfully survive and retreat to safety. It is these forces that form the core of the modern Greek military, having trained, and even still commanding, many of its soldiers. Others came from the remnants of the Cypriot military, among others.
Army[]
The Greek Army is composed of three main armies, headquartered at:
- Army of the West, responsible for Heptanesa, Morea, and mainland Hellas, and headquartered in Sparti.
- Army of the Islands, responsible for Agion Oros and Chalkidiki, most of Delia, the islands of Hellas, the Sporades, and Cyprus, and headquartered in Ermoupoli.
- Army of the East, responsible for parts of Delia, Thrace, and the Dodecanese and headquartered in Heraklea.
The Greek Army is the one branch located centrally on Skyros, within the Defense Ministry, and headed up by a full general.
Prominent formations from prior to Doomsday include the 12th and 16th Mechanized Infantry Divisions, 20th Armored Division, and the 8th Infantry Division, all of which weathered Doomsday somewhat intact even if they were forced to abandon most of their equipment. Today, these formation are stationed in Hellas, Thrace, and Heptanesa, respectively. The 1st Army Aviation Brigade and its helicopters also managed to escape largely intact, fleeing to Crete after government recall, where they remain based today, and primarily consist of older helicopters and newer ones purchased from the Celtic Alliance.
The 1st Infantry and 2nd Mechanized Infantry Divisions, largely destroyed on Doomsday and in its aftermath, have also been reconstituted, and are located in the Dodecanese Republic.
A special detachment, in co-ordination with Naval Marines, has been installed in the Lecce Mandate.
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The Greek Navy is based out of the Morean island of Poros, where Greek navy personnel have long been trained. As with many post-Doomsday navies, it is composed of the remnants of the Greek Fleet before Doomsday, and what has been built since that time. Largely, this means a fleet with a backbone of surviving destroyers, along with frigates, a few submarines and smaller craft - minesweepers, patrol boats and what are approximately the equivalent of corvettes like those used in various navies during the Second World War.
Naval Marines also play a large role, with small detachments being stationed on most naval vessels, where they function as support and boarding personnel. Two Marine regiments, stationed at Poros and Ermoupoli, are separate from the main body of the Navy.
Naval forces, outside of National Reserve vessels - which are largely concentrated in the League - are divided into five separate fleet detachments:
- The Aegean Fleet, based on Skyros and responsible for the Aegean Sea and its islands.
- The Black Sea Fleet, based in Heraklea and responsible for the Straits and the Black Sea.
- The Ionian Fleet, based in Corfu, responsible for the Ionian Sea and nearby regions.
Each of these is headed up by a Rear-Admiral, except the Levant Fleet, which is under a Commodore. A Vice-Admiral is then in charge of two of these fleet detachments, with a Chief of Naval Operations holding the only rank of Admiral, barring times of war when a series of temporary promotions occur to accommodate all of the reserve vessels and their crews or, as is currently the case, the promotion of the Chief to be the head of the Defense Ministry.
Air Force[]
The Air Force is based out of a base built near Heraklion on Crete. It is composed of surviving aircraft from before Doomsday, and then aircraft that have either been built or purchased by the Greek government since.
Aircraft in the Air Force vary a great amount. Left over from Doomsday, there are F-4E Phantoms, A-7 Corsairs, Mirage F1CG's, F-104G Starfighters, and F-5 Freedom Fighters, which are all aging and are to be replaced as soon as possible. They are seldom used, and form, for the most part, the reserves of each member of the federation.
Aircraft made in Greece, using the restored State Aircraft Factory in Phaliron and the repaired facilities of the Hellenic Aerospace Industry in Tanagra, along with the industry of the Delian League, were at first rough copies of the Mirage F1CG, and the A-7 Corsair, largely using spare parts and rough blueprints from former technicians who had done maintenance work on them.
In 1998, using their experience with the rough copies of the F1CG and the A-7, as well as aid from the Celtic Alliance and the Nordic Union, Greek engineers designed a new plane for the air force, thought by pilots to be the rough equivalent of an upgraded version of the F-15 Eagle used by the American military before Doomsday, referred to as the "KEA 15 Hermes," which reflects its similarities to the Eagle. This basic model, though up to "F" in variants now, continues to be produced and forms the backbone of the aircraft used by the Air Force and has been exported to several of their allies.
In recent years, a fair number of the Saab JAS 39 Gripen and the Lynx Helicopter have been purchased from the Nordic Union and the Celtic Alliance, respectively, as well. The Federation has been given the rights to produce their own variants of these models, with production starting at Phaliron in the fall of 2011 on copies of the current Celtic and Nordic productions.
The Air Force is divided into 10 separate combat wings, all of which are headed by a brigadier general. These are divided into three air armies, each under a major general. The Chief of Staff holds the rank of lieutenant general. These are located at:
- 110th Combat Wing: Euesperides
- 111th Combat Wing: Lefcosia
- 112th Combat Wing: Tanagra
- 113th Combat Wing: Heraklion
- 114th Combat Wing: Araxos
- 115th Combat Wing: Andravida
- 116th Combat Wing: Rhodes
- 117th Combat Wing: Ioannina
- 118th Combat Wing: Lemnos
- 119th Combat Wing: Heraklea
The air armies are headquartered at:
- 1st Air Army: Araxos
- 2nd Air Army: Lemnos
See Also[]
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