Greece’s Defense Minister Nikos Dendias attended a ceremony on Tuesday at the Elefsina Air Base for the repatriation of the identified remains of six Greek soldiers who fell in battle during the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus.

The somber ceremony included full military honors and a memorial service.

“Today, Greece fulfills a historic duty and does what is self-evident: it renders due honor to the dead and justice to their families,” Dendias said. “After decades of waiting, we repatriate the remains of six soldiers who heroically fell during the Turkish invasion of Cyprus, returning them to their homeland.”

Dendias emphasized that honoring fallen soldiers is a long-standing tradition in Hellenism. Citing historical precedent, he recalled the condemnation of victorious Athenian generals after the Battle of Arginusae in 406 BC for failing to retrieve their dead due to a storm.

He also referred to the Ark of National Memory at the Ministry of National Defense, a monument by sculptor Kostas Varotsos engraved with the names of all of modern Greece’s fallen in action.

“For five decades, the search and identification of Cyprus’ missing persons has been a national priority,” Dendias said. “Today, our hearts and thoughts are with the families of the fallen, and we deeply respect the pain of their long wait.”

It is estimated that more than 80 Greek soldiers, NCOs and officers went missing after the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in July 1974 and the subsequent military conflict that lasted a little under a month.

Turkish forces continued to illegally occupy roughly one-third of the island republic to this day.