By Mahmut Geldi

BEIRUT 

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday sent a message to Lebanese counterpart Michel Aoun on the occasion of Lebanon's 75th independence anniversary.

According to a statement released by Aoun’s office, Erdogan in his message stressed that his country attaches great importance to Lebanon’s sovereignty, independence and stability.

For four centuries, what is now Lebanon had been part of the Ottoman Empire. Following the First World War, the region came under French control before announcing its independence as a sovereign state on Nov. 22, 1943.