Turkish officials marked Tuesday the 100th anniversary of Çanakkale Victory Day -- the battle which marked a turnaround in favor of the Turks during World War I against the Allied Forces.
"As we are celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Çanakkale Naval Victory, we remember with gratitude veteran Mustafa Kemal and our martyrs representing self-sacrifice and altruism on this day of pride," President Recep Tayyıp Erdoğan said in a written statement released Tuesday.
Pointing out that the Turkish nation has been strengthened and inspired by an ancient civilization, Erdoğan said, "We will exert all efforts to raise our nation beyond the level of contemporary civilizations."
The Turkish president also emphasized the need to keep unity and solidarity. "It is only by embracing our country, flag, unity and solidarity that we can pay our debt of gratitude to hundreds of thousands of martyrs lying in Gallipoli," Erdoğan said.
The 1915 battle took place in the Dardanelles strait in Çanakkale province's district of Gallipoli.
The victory gave Turkey a massive moral boost that enabled it to wage a war of independence and eventually, in 1923, form a republic from the ashes of the Ottoman Empire.
"Those who see and live the Çanakkale spirit and visit Çanakkale martyrs know why we have to take care of the victims of the Syrian civil war," Defense Minister İsmet Yılmaz said.
Yilmaz, stating that there were soldiers coming from Syria's Aleppo and Damascus to support the Ottomans against the Allied Forces, said, "We have a duty of loyalty to those who lost their grandparents in Çanakkale."
Minister of Culture and Tourism Ömer Çelik also released a commemoration message referring to the anniversary.
"We will make ourselves heard with an extensive ceremony to emphasize that the Çanakkale Martyrs Memorial does not symbolize war but peace," Çelik said.
The conflict is also accepted as one of the greatest Ottoman victories during World War I and a major Allied Forces failure -- but there were many casualties on both sides after eight months of fighting.
Around 13,000 New Zealanders and 50,000 Australians fought during the war, and at least 2,700 New Zealanders and 8,700 Australians were killed.
Ottoman forces lost almost 60,000 soldiers. Around 1,700 Indian soldiers, fighting for the British crown, also lost their lives.
#Turkish President Erdogan
#Gallipoli
#Turkish Defence Minister Ismet Yilmaz
#Omer Celik
#Minister of Culture and Tourism
9 yıl önce
