Ankara, 02 Sept 2021

Turkey recently celebrated 99th anniversary of Victory Day, commemorating the resounding defeat of the Greek forces in the Battle of Dumlupinar, Western Anatolia in 1922 and is dedicated to Turkey’s armed forces.

From Aug. 26 to Aug. 30, 1922, Turkish forces fought the Battle of Dumlupinar in what is now Turkey’s western Kutahya province, where the invading Greek army was decisively defeated. By the end of 1922, all foreign forces had been expelled from the territories that collectively became the Republic of Turkey a year later.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, top government and military officials, and opposition leaders laid a wreath at Anitkabir, the mausoleum of the republic's founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in the capital Ankara.

"We are increasing the deterrence of Turkish Armed Forces, which is the apple of our nation's eyes, in every field with steps taken in the defense industry," Erdogan wrote in the Anitkabir memorial book. He wrote ' Through the reforms we have implemented in democracy, justice, rights, and freedoms, we strengthen the bond between the nation and the Republic'.

He said, ' We are carrying Turkey to a bright future in line with the goals you have set for us, and is in safe hands'.

Earlier, Erdogan also issued a statement to mark the Victory Day.

"We are in the bliss of achieving the 99th anniversary of the Great Victory, one of the cornerstones of our centuries-old glorious history. I mark the honor of the August 30 Victory Day of our nation, the Turkish Cypriots, and our citizens living in various countries around the world," Erdogan said in a written message.

Noting that Aug. 30 is one of the most critical turning points in the country’s history, Erdogan said: "The spirit, belief, and the will that inspired the Great Victory are drawing the direction for our nation today, just as it did 99 years ago."

Turkey will continue to defend the rights of the oppressed against the oppressors and to strive for peace, justice, and freedom to prevail all over the world, he added.

“On the 99th anniversary of the Battle of Dumlupinar, I commemorate the founder of the Turkish Republic Gazi Mustafa Kemal Ataturk and his heroic comrades-in-arms with mercy and gratitude,” Vice President Fuat Oktay said on Twitter.

Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu hailed the Turkish War of Independence as “the first serious struggle against the colonial and imperialist ideology that had descended on the world like a nightmare for nearly a century.”

He said the struggle was “an example and a source of inspiration for all oppressed nations” and a victory that remains a source of pride to this day.

“On this occasion, I commemorate all our commanders, martyrs, and veterans with mercy and gratitude, especially Gazi Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the commander of the great victory,” Soylu said in a statement.