The Minister for Veterans' Affairs, Alan Griffin, today met
with French Secretary of State for Veterans' Affairs, Jean-Marie
Bockel, to reaffirm the two nations' strong relationship and
commitment to commemorating Australian service on the Western
Front. In France for activities marking the 90th anniversary
of the end of the First World War, Mr Griffin said he was
pleased to meet with Mr Bockel to discuss key Australian projects
on the Western Front including an annual Anzac Day service
at Villers-Bretonneux.
Mr Griffin said
discussions on opportunities to raise awareness of the service
and sacrifice of Australians on the Western Front were welcomed
by Mr Bockel. "The Western Front is a major part of our wartime
history. Some 295,000 Australians fought in France
and Belgium between April 1916 and November 1918 in a campaign
where more than 46,000 Australians lost their lives," he said.
"This year more
than 5000 Australians gathered at the Australian National
Memorial at Villers-Bretonneux for the first Australian-led
Anzac Day Dawn
service, an activity that I am pleased will now be an annual
event," he said. "The cooperation of the people of France,
both nationally and locally, has been imperative to ensuring
this event continues and I thank them for their continued
support."
Mr Griffin said
he had raised the issue of the new Commonwealth War Graves
cemetery at Fromelles and noted that the French authorities
and local communities had been very accommodating. Ministers
Griffin and Bockel will attend the re-dedication of the Australian
Corps Memorial at Le Hamel on Saturday 8 November.