The Second Commissioner of the Australian Embassy, Lachlan Scully, accompanied by Lieutenant Colonel Ioannis Skouras, Military Director of the Office of the Deputy Minister of National Defense, Ioannis A. Kefalogiannis, to Lemnos on 6 and 7 February.
Their visit aimed to inspect the progress of the implementation of the Australian government’s project, the ‘Australian Remembrance Trail’ in honour of Lemnos, that served as a significant base for the Allies throughout the Gallipoli campaign in the First World War.
The Lemnos Memorial Trail (for which Australia has allocated several million dollars) will allow travelers to visit significant sites and develop a website that tells the story of Australia in Lemnos for those who cannot visit in person.
When completed, more than twelve significant sites in Lemnos will be accessible to the public, giving visitors an insight into the experiences of soldiers and medical personnel on the island.
On Tuesday afternoon, a technical meeting was held at the Myrina Officers’ Club under the auspices of the Commander of the 88th ID Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Ioannis Korres, with the participation of the aforementioned officials, the Mayor of Lemnos, Eleonora Georga, the Deputy Mayor of Lemnos, Dimitris Bouloutis, and Engineer Ms Harou, who is responsible for the contractor company on Lemnos, regarding the technical aspects of the project.
During the meeting, the seventeen intervention points of the project and the role of the involved parties were thoroughly examined.
Upon the conclusion of the meeting, the participants noted the “excellent cooperation” and expressed optimism that the project is progressing swiftly into its implementation phase.
On Wednesday morning, Deputy Mayor Dimitris Bouloutis accompanied Mr Scully and Lieutenant Colonel Skouras to all intervention points, in the presence of Ms Harou, while local authorities also attended where necessary.
Finally, accompanied by the Commander of the 88th ID Battalion, the mission visited His Eminence Metropolitan of Lemnos, Hierotheos, who confirmed the consent and good intentions of the Metropolis of Lemnos and Agios Eustratios for cooperation in the areas under its jurisdiction.
Upon departing Lemnos, both the Second Commissioner of the Australian Embassy and the Military Director of the Office of the Deputy Minister of National Defense expressed their satisfaction with the results of their visit and the spirit of cooperation among the involved parties.
Lemnos was a crucial stop for the allied forces before the landing at Gallipoli. The 3rd Australian Division conducted its final training on the island, and throughout the Gallipoli campaign, Lemnos played a significant role as a hospital base.
