Memoir of Greek-Vietnamese hero launched in Greece

The Su That (Truth) National Political Publishing House and the Vietnamese Embassy in Greece on October 17 jointly introduced the book "Vietnam - My Second Homeland" by the Greek hero of Vietnam People’s Armed Forces Kostas Sarantidis-Nguyen Van Lap.

The seminar is an activity to pay tribute to the contributions and sacrifices for justice, peace, independence, and freedom of the internationalist who has Greek and Vietnamese citizenship - Kostas Sarantidis-Nguyen Van Lap.

He is a Greek who fought alongside the Vietnamese people for many years and made Vietnam his second homeland.

The book of the Greek hero of the Vietnamese People's Armed Forces Kostas Sarantidis-Nguyen Van Lap. Photo: VNA

In Greek, the book is titled "Testimony of a Greek-Vietnamese on Vietnam's Struggle for Independence," while its Vietnamese translation is titled "Vietnam - My Second Homeland."

As a person with "an extremely interesting and adventurous life," Kostas Sarantidis' stories have been recorded and preserved by the Association of Greeks Abroad because "his experiences are unique in the world."

Speaking at the seminar, Vu Trong Lam, Director and editor-in-chief of the Truth National Political Publishing House, said that the memoir "Vietnam - My Second Home" is a drastic account of the Vietnamese revolutionary war, in which the portrait of Kostas Sarantidis-Nguyen Van Lap appears humble but imbued with the spirit of a hero.

Lam emphasized that the book is a tribute to the Greek people and generations of Vietnamese and Greeks.

"The book also provides more evidence to help readers of the two countries better understand and appreciate the history between the two peoples, thus contributing to consolidating and developing the traditional friendly relations between the two sides," Lam added.

Kosta Sarantidis Nguyen Van Lap. Archive photo

Born in Greece, Kostas Sarantidis spent most of his youth fighting with the Viet Minh forces against the invading French colonialists. In February 1946, at nineteen, he was sent to Vietnam as a soldier in the French expeditionary force, with the "desire to liberate" the country, as the French government had lulled and deceived him.

However, when he witnessed with his own eyes so many atrocities committed by the French Foreign Legion, he realized that the legionnaires were not there to protect the people but to oppress and kill them.

Only four months after arriving in Vietnam, Kostas Sarantidis defected from the French colonialist army. They fought alongside the Vietnamese during the First Indochina War to liberate Vietnam from French colonialism. He adopted the Vietnamese name Nguyen Van Lap and officially became "Uncle Ho's soldier" in June 1946.

After living in Vietnam for nearly 20 years, Kostas Sarantidis-Nguyen Van Lap returned to Greece in 1965 and, from there, continued to serve as a bridge of friendship between the two countries.

With significant contributions to the cause of national liberation and the construction of Vietnam, Kostas Sarantidis-Nguyen Van Lap was awarded the Friendship Medal and granted Vietnamese citizenship in 2010.

In 2013, he became the first and only foreigner to receive the honorary title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces of Vietnam.

The ashes of Kostas Sarantidis Nguyen Van Lap were interred in the central city of Danang in Vietnam. Photo: Military Zone 5

After his death in 2021, the ashes of Kostas Sarantidis Nguyen Van Lap were repatriated to Vietnam from his hometown of Thessaloniki, Greece on August 2, 2022. The repatriation was made in accordance with his will to return to Vietnam and rest with his comrades.