Photo By Petty Officer 2nd Class Jim Ong | PHILIPPINE SEA (April 25, 2020) Flags from Australia and New Zealand are hoisted...... read more read more
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PHILIPPINE SEA -- Members of the Royal Australian Navy and Royal Australian Air Force hosted the 105th Anzac Day ceremony aboard the 7th Fleet flagship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19) on April 25.
The ceremony consisted of multinational service members serving aboard the Blue Ridge paying their respects to the fallen, a trumpet performance of the song "Last Post," and guests saluting the Australian and New Zealand flags as they were raised on the ship.
Anzac Day was established in 1916 to honor the soldiers who gave their lives on the front line in Turkey during the Gallipoli Campaign, the first major military action fought by the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) in World War I.
On April 25 1915, Australian and New Zealand soldiers landed at a place now called Anzac Cove on the Gallipoli Peninsula. This was the first time for the majority of those 16,000 Australian and New Zealand forces had seen combat. During that same day, 2,000 of them had been wounded or killed.
“The actions of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps 105 years ago to this day cemented the reputation of Australia and New Zealand as a fighting force,” said Australian Naval Officer Lt. Cmdr. Daniel Stavers. “But more than that it helped define the Aussie and the Kiwi national character, as nations with their own identity, more than just members of the Commonwealth. This character soon became a thing of legend, as word spread of the young men of Australia and New Zealand who were highly capable and disciplined soldiers on the battlefield.”
The Blue Ridge has been the flagship for the embarked 7th Fleet staff since 1979, and embodies the multilateral commitment that the U.S. and Australian and New Zealand forces have to each other by hosting military from America’s allies which all shares the same interests.
“The theme for this years’ Anzac Day is alliance,” said Stavers. “As I look in front of me, I think we would be pretty hard pressed to see another Anzac service which speaks more to this theme, than we do at this time. Holding an Anzac Day service on a US ship, based in Japan, with participants from all of the five eyes nations plus Japan, speaks volumes to the forged alliances which have brought us together. The alliance between the US, Australia, and New Zealand is not a new one. Australia and New Zealand have fought alongside the US in every major conflict over the last 105 years: WWI, WWII, Vietnam, Korea, the Gulf War and Afghanistan. That is 105 years of alliance, 105 years of shared values, and 105 years of celebration and sacrifice.”
The significance of this battle by the forces is widely regarded as the foundation legend of Australia’s military history and a symbol of Australian bravery. Although militarily the campaign was a failure, the characteristics the ANZACs displayed throughout the entire campaign of mateship, courage and endurance have been celebrated as a defining characteristic of their people.
The ceremony concluded with the service members saluting the Australian and New Zealand flags.
As the US Navy’s largest numbered fleet, 7th Fleet interacts with 35 other maritime nations to build maritime partnerships that foster maritime security, promote stability and prevent conflict.
| Date Taken: | 05.06.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 05.06.2020 03:11 |
| Story ID: | 369297 |
| Location: | PHILIPPINE SEA |
| Web Views: | 115 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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