'The 29th biannual Posidonia Exhibition and events are occurring at a time when geopolitical rivalries and conflicts are at their highest since the historically momentous collapse of the Soviet Union 35 years ago, and when attacks on merchant shipping are, regrettably, the highest since the age of sail (barring the two World Wars.) Against this worrying (and rather disheartening) background, we are happy and proud to host a 'maritime week' that, once again, brings together so many national delegations from all over the world, to cooperate in the pursuit of peaceful trade, goodwill and coexistence.

So, I would like to thank the organisers for their consistent commitment to the highest level of professionalism with a genuinely human face, and all the exhibitors, organisations, delegations and visitors for honouring our country and Hellenic shipping with their presence. Thank you and “Welcome”!

Hellenic shipping is proud of its heritage which goes back to neolithic times.

Seaborne trade and merchant shipping have and will always exist but the nations that have and will be prominent in this perennial enterprise have changed many times throughout the ages, as we know. As we also know, maritime supremacy always conferred strategic as well as commercial advantages.

Hellenic Shipping has endured.

In the 80s of the last century American author Kurt Vonnegut Jr remarked:

'We will go down in history as the first society that wouldn't save itself because it wasn't cost effective'.

I dare say, that this is largely due to the one-dimensional fixation on the 'bottom line' and on the share price of corporate business, a model of business that industrialisation brought to the fore in the 20th century. Fundamentally, this model separates the ownership of a business from its management and thereby splits its integrity of purpose and blurs the ultimate attribution of responsibility and accountability.

Remarkably, Hellenic shipping is still characterised, primarily, by genuinely private family companies where persons matter more than statistics, checklists, procedures and the 'bottom line'. Perhaps we are the last international sector in the real economy globally where this still applies. But it does and I salute it. Thank you!