“Italy is a free state thanks to them”

Armed Forces Day – Photo by Ansa Foto

“Today we celebrate National Unity Day and on this day we pay tribute to the Armed Forces who, with their dedication and contribution, have allowed Italy to become a united, free and democratic State” . These are the words of the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella in a message to Defense Minister Guido Crosetto, on the occasion of National Unity Day and Armed Forces Day.

The Head of State paid tribute to the Unknown Soldier during a ceremony which ended with the Mameli Anthem. Then, accompanied by Minister Crosetto, he left Piazza Venezia where the celebrations of the Day will continue. After the Italian national anthem, Mattarella received the laurel wreath from the cuirassiers and, to the notes of the legend of the Piave, he went up to deposit it in front of the chapel of the Unknown Soldier, at Altare della Patria.

The ceremony took place in the presence of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and the Presidents of the Senate and of the Chamber, Ignazio La Russa and Lorenzo Fontana, as well as the Minister of Defense Guido Crosetto.

Ukraine, Mattarella in Crosetto: “Peace is a value to preserve more than ever”

“Peace is a value to be cultivated and preserved and, more than ever, the aggression unleashed today by the Russian Federation against Ukraine, calls us to the responsibility of bearing concrete witness to our convictions, underlining the need to to preside, together with our allies, over the principles on which international cooperation is based,” continues Mattarella in the message to Defense Minister Guido Crosetto.

The memory train

Before the celebration at Altare della Patria, a ceremony was held at Termini station to commemorate the anniversary of the arrival in Rome, in 1921, of the train that left Aquileia on which the body of the unknown soldier was placed on platform 1. A journey recounted by the Train of Memory which departed on October 6 from Trieste and traveled 17 stages, was born from the initiative of the Ministry of Defence, in collaboration with the Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane Group.

Crosetto: “There is no greater honor than serving a country”

“Today a journey ends physically, but what must continue is the ideal journey that reminds us of the sacrifice that many men have made and must engage us in our daily efforts to serve him as did these people, even strangers.” our democracy and our freedom. There is no greater honor than to serve a country”. These are the words of Defense Minister Guido Crosetto during the ceremony at Rome Termini.