Turkey's centenary: PM Kakar pays tribute to Turks on 100th Republic Day

• "Turkiye has made impressive strides," PM Kakar says.
• Pakistan rejoices with Turkish brothers and sisters, he adds.
• "Pak-Turk relationship beats in hearts of two people."

Felicitating Turkey on the occasion of completing its centenary, Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar lauded the resolute grit and determination of the country's people on Sunday.

PM Kakar, extending his wishes to the Turkish nation on its 100th Republic Day, praised them for completing this major milestone, preserving their independence and inspiring freedom-loving people around the globe.

The interim premier commended the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's dynamic leadership under which the country's progressed to advancements, undergoing economic transformation. He also praised him for utilising the transformation to promote the mutually reinforcing goals of peace and prosperity, which, he said, received global recognition.

Taking to X, formerly Twitter, PM Kakar wrote: "On behalf of the government and people of Pakistan, I extend our warmest felicitations to the brotherly people of Turkiye on the auspicious occasion of the centenary of the Turkish Republic."

As the Turkish Republic was first proclaimed by the Turkish Grand National Assembly, in Ankara on October 29, 1923, the prime minister further wrote, this momentous occasion also marked the culmination of the Turkish nation’s heroic struggle for freedom, led by the charismatic Ghazi Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, he added.

"During the last one hundred years, Turkiye has made impressive strides across all walks of life," Kakar posted on X.

As the Turkish Republic marks its centennial, we, in Pakistan, rejoice with our Turkish brothers and sisters on their innumerable accomplishments, he added.

PM Kakar highlighted Pakistan and Turkiye enjoy fraternal relations rooted in abiding ties of religion, culture and history.

The prime minister went on to share Pakistan and Turkey's long-standing relations by highlighting a quote by Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah.

"The Muslims of Pakistan entertain sentiments of affection and esteem for your country, and now Turkiye and Pakistan both as free, sovereign and independent countries, can strengthen their ties more and more for the good of both," Kakar wrote, quoting Jinnah.

"It is a matter of great satisfaction that our bilateral relations have continued to grow from strength to strength with every passing day. He said institutional mechanisms including the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council (HLSCC) and the Strategic Economic Framework (SEF) had provided a leadership-driven, people-centric and future-oriented focus to steer bilateral partnership in areas such as defence, economy, health, education, agriculture, tourism and culture," he added.

The premier mentioned that the unique aspect of the Pakistan-Turkiye relationship is that it beats in the hearts of two people.

“We have stood by each other in every trial and tribulation — from the devastating earthquake that hit Southern Turkiye in February 2023, to the massive floods in Pakistan, in 2010 and 2022, and the earthquake in 2005, the abounding solidarity and support expressed by the people of our two countries for their brethren in need, represents an unremitting tale of love and devotion unique in inter-state relations," Kakar stated.

The Pakistani premier reaffirmed Pakistan’s abiding commitment to further cement the multidimensional strategic ties with Turkiye, especially in the economic domain.

"We have already taken concrete steps to this end including the signing of the Trade in Goods Agreement (TGA) and the Strategic Economic Framework (SEF), he said adding undoubtedly, robust economic partnership and strengthened connectivity will serve as important pillars to steer our bilateral relationship in the days and years ahead," he wrote on X.

Kakar, in his message to the Turkish nation, said that the people of Pakistan pray for continued prosperity and progress of the Turkish nation during the second century of the great Turkish Republic.

"May the special relationship between our two nations continue to flourish in all times to come," the prime minister added.

Celebrations remain muted as Turkey mourns for Gaza

Turkey marks its centenary as a post-Ottoman republic today with somewhat muted celebrations held under the shadow of Israel's escalating war with Hamas resistance forces in Gaza.

President Erdogan will be front and centre of day-long events that both honour the secular republic's founder and play up the achievement of the Islamic-rooted party running Turkey since 2002.

Erdogan and World War I-era military commander Mustafa Kemal Ataturk have become the seminal figures of the modern Turkish state.

Ataturk is lionised across Turkish society for driving out invading forces and building a brand new nation out of the fallen Ottoman Empire's ruins in the wake of World War I.

Turkey was formed as a Western-facing nation that stripped religion from its state institutions and tried to forge a modern new identity out of its myriad ethnic groups. It eventually became a proud member of the US-led NATO defence alliance and a beacon of democratic hopes in the Middle East.

But Ataturk's social and geopolitical transformation of the overwhelmingly Muslim nation created divisions that weigh on Turkish politics to this day. Erdogan tapped into these as he led his conservative Justice and Development Party (AKP) to power over the leftist Republican People's Party (CHP) formed by Ataturk.

He has spent much of the past decade testing the limits of Turkey's secular traditions as well as its ties with the West.

These competing forces will be on full display as Erdogan starts the day by paying respects to Ataturk — and ends it by overseeing celebrations of Turkey's more recent achievements while he was prime minister and president.

— Additional input by AFP