The Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attended the celebrations for the 569th anniversary of the Fall of Constantinople at the Ataturk Airport and the first sapling planting ceremony at Ataturk Airport National Park.
As he said, more than 500 thousand people were standing in front of him, mainly younger generation, for which, as the Turkish President stressed, he is very proud of.
He spoke about the new generation of the country, with special emphasis on the “national goals” he has set for the vision of 2053 -the 600th anniversary of the Fall of Constantinople- for a strong and “united Turkey”.
As he said, the Turks must be united and that the national interests of the country are more important than politics.
“As our ancestors buried Byzantium, let us hope that today, by building our vision for 2053, we will also manage to put in the dusty shelves of history the current Byzantines who are plotting against us,” he stressed.
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The Turkish President also referred to the war in Ukraine, saying that the situation between Russia and Ukraine must end. He wondered what Turkey should do about it and replied that it should stop the bloodshed.
He also spoke about the Gaza Strip where there is bloodshed, as he said. “We say stop in Libya, Syria, Iraq, the Mediterranean and the Aegean,” the Turkish President said provocatively.
In front of the podium where the Turkish President was speaking, there were men wearing traditional military uniforms of the Ottoman period.
As the Turkish President said, Constantinople was the favorite city of the Prophet Muhammad and that is why it was conquered and was taken from the hands of the Byzantines.