Michael Hernandez
October 29, 2021•Update: October 29, 2021
WASHINGTON
A bipartisan group of lawmakers congratulated Turkish-Americans and the wider Turkish public on Friday as the country celebrates its 98th Republic Day.
"On this day, the Republic of Turkey was formally established and Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the visionary leader of modern Turkey, became its first President," congressmen Steve Cohen, Steve Chabot, Gerry Connolly and Joe Wilson said in a statement.
"Turkey remains a critical ally, as a member of NATO with a majority Muslim population that is strategically located at the intersection of Europe, Asia, and Africa, and plays a key role in Transatlantic security, and the fight against terrorism. Turkey also continues to host the largest number of refugees worldwide,” they added.
The four congressmen are the chairmen of the bipartisan Caucus on US-Turkey Relations and Turkish Americans.
Republic Day is being celebrated across Turkey, its diplomatic missions abroad and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
On Oct. 29, 1923, Ataturk officially declared the name of the nation and proclaimed the country's status as a republic. A vote then took place in Turkey’s parliament, the Grand National Assembly, and Ataturk, a revolutionary statesman, was unanimously elected the first president of the Republic of Turkey.
Since then, Turkey has celebrated Republic Day every year on Oct. 29.
