ATHENS – Greece and the United States are two allies who are pursuing the same objectives, the U.S. Ambassador to Greece Geoffrey Pyatt said on Friday, in a speech at the Souda Bay Naval Base in Crete, marking the 242nd birthday of the United States Navy.

Speaking to the base’s personnel, Pyatt described it is a “model of bilateral military cooperation”, noting that the increase in the number of personnel demonstrates the widening defense cooperation between Greece and the U.S. as well as the strategic importance of the base.

Thanks to the close cooperation with the Greek Armed Forces and the government, he continued, the base in Souda has become a top logistics distributor for other, military outposts.

The ambassador said his two key priorities is providing assistance to Greece for its economic recovery, as an ally in the EU and NATO, and cooperation with the country in maintaining and deepening defense, security, law enforcement and counter-terrorism co-operation. In both these priorities, cooperation of the Greek and the US Navy is “crucial,” he said.

“Recent military operations have further underlined the importance of Souda in the Mediterranean,” Pyatt said, adding that the base is dedicated to servicing the fleet and air transport in a “strategically crucial area of the world”, and in deepening co-operation with Greece.