19 May 1919, the date when the Great Leader Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the Republic of Türkiye, landed in Samsun and launched our national struggle against the occupying forces, including Greece, is celebrated with great enthusiasm by the Turkish nation on the occasion of the “Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day”.

Greece has advanced the “Pontus” allegations through the national legislation adopted in 1994 and has since levelled these allegations against our country that lack any legal foundation; continuously expands these baseless claims without hesitation, and teaches them to children in primary and secondary schools nationwide as part of the curriculum through a circular from the Ministry of Education.

Having failed in its invasion attempt in pursuit of the “Megali Idea”, Greece seeks to cover up both its defeat and the grave atrocities it committed by bringing up the baseless “Pontus” allegations against our country. The war crimes and atrocities perpetrated by the Greek army were documented in the reports of the Allied Commission of Inquiry and recorded in Article 59 of the Lausanne Peace Treaty.

The Greek authorities must cease exploiting history for political motives and acknowledge the savage crimes committed against Turks and other ethnic groups beginning with the Tripolitsa massacre of 1821, as well as the atrocities perpetrated against Turks and other ethnic groups in Western Anatolia following the attempted occupation of İzmir on 15 May 1919.

We call on Greece to adopt an approach that will foster the development of our bilateral relations on the basis of peace and cooperation, rather than using history to incite animosity.