VZCZCXRO0513
PP RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHTH #1876 2611308
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 181308Z SEP 07
FM AMEMBASSY ATHENS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0270
INFO RUEHIK/AMCONSUL THESSALONIKI PRIORITY 1568
RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS ATHENS 001876 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR R CRIEHL; EUR CGRAFFEY, MBRYZA; EUR/PPD MOKEEFE, GCOUCH, 
BARMSTRONG; EUR/SE KFITZGERALD, BHUNT, GCOWAN, SALTMAN-WINANS 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: NATO PREL KPAO OEXC OIIP GR
SUBJECT:  GREEK STUDENTS LEARN ABOUT NATO, WWII 
 
------- 
SUMMARY 
------- 
 
¶1.  From July 1 - 4, 2007, Mission Public Diplomacy staff escorted 
ten Greek international relations and political science graduate and 
post-graduate students to Brussels for briefings at NATO 
Headquarters and a tour of important World War II monuments.  The 
students appreciated the candor of their NATO interlocutors and felt 
they learned much about the positive role the U.S. played in Europe 
in World War II.  They suggested another day at NATO Headquarters, 
including more substantive briefings.  They asked for exposure to 
non-Western NATO missions, and they felt the trip as planned 
featured too much time in the bus.  The students have set up an 
e-mail group to exchange ideas and attended two post-tour 
debriefings.  End Summary. 
 
-------------------------- 
MORE SUBSTANTIVE BRIEFINGS 
-------------------------- 
 
¶2.  The students felt there was a lot of overlap between their 
introductory briefing (Jonathan Parrish) and the briefing on NATO 
structure (Tom Underwood).  They requested, instead, briefings on 
NATO operations, budget, and public diplomacy strategy.  A few of 
the students expressed interest in a role-playing exercise to 
simulate NATO decision-making and resource allotment.  Most of the 
students asked for a second full day of briefings, noting the chance 
to communicate with officials at NATO was the most unique part of 
the tour. 
 
------------------------------ 
GREAT MONUMENTS; LESS BUS TIME 
------------------------------ 
 
¶3.  One student commented that he was "amazed by how much the 
Americans had done for Europe in World War II," and several said 
that visits to Bastogne and the Henri Chappelle Cemetary made those 
events real for them.  A visit to the Remember Museum, where 
memorabilia from U.S. war veterans is on display, gave the trip a 
powerful emotional angle.  The distances between these sites, 
however, were great, and the students felt they were rushed and 
spent too much time on the bus.  A happy hour with professor and 
NATO expert Dr. Edwina Campbell had to be cancelled when the bus was 
delayed returning to Brussels.  One suggestion included sleeping 
near Bastogne the first night, taking tours the next day, and then 
ending in Brussels. 
 
------------------ 
OTHER OBSERVATIONS 
------------------ 
 
¶4.  As usual, NATO scheduled a briefing at the Greek Mission for the 
group without escorts.  The students reported that the Greek 
Ambassador to NATO shared his thoughts with the students on whether 
Greece could truly be called the leader in the Balkans, and the 
students raved about the briefing.  Both the American PD officer and 
the Greek PD Specialist from the U.S. Consulate in Thessaloniki who 
were escorting the group were barred from the briefing. 
 
-------------------------- 
POST FOLLOW-UP AND RESULTS 
-------------------------- 
 
¶5.  The students made it clear that much of what they learned during 
the trip was not covered in their previous studies, and they have 
been excited about sharing their experience.  They were asked for 
their feedback at a post-trip debriefing with the Public Affairs 
Officer and at a casual dinner with a Greek desk officer and a post 
PD officer.  The students have also established an informal e-mail 
group to exchange ideas.  Several of the students have discussed 
possible programs with other students as the new school year 
begins. 
 
¶6.  This student program is a first for Mission Greece and supports 
our priority goal of engaging and informing youth audiences.  The 
high levels of anti-Americanism and misinformation about NATO, and 
history in general, in Greece underscores the continuing need for 
Greek student NATO tours.  The extremely positive reaction of the 
student participants in this tour reaffirms the value of this 
program.