Deputy Foreign Minister Kyriakos Gerontopoulos represented the Greek government today, Friday, 16 August, at the opening of the renovated Kemal Ataturk Museum in Thessaloniki, with Turkish Culture and Tourism Minister Omer Celik in attendance.
Speaking to journalists following the opening, Mr. Gerontopoulos stated that “we Greeks believe in friendship and cooperation amongst the peoples of the region, and today’s opening proves this.”
In his speech, Mr. Gerontopoulos said, “I would like first of all, on behalf of the Greek government, to welcome Turkish Culture and Tourism Minister Omer Celik to Greece, on the opportunity of the opening of the renovated Kemal Ataturk Museum. It is very important for everyone to be aware of and honour their history and urge others to become better acquainted with it.
The Kemal Ataturk Museum has, through the recent renovations, been transformed into a space where the visitor can come into direct contact with snapshots of the life and history that comprise the personality of the founder of the modern Turkish state.
Kemal Ataturk was a major historical figure. I would not be the first to refer, as well, to a major Greek political leader of that era, Eleftherios Venizelos.
The existence in Thessaloniki, in the heart of Macedonia, of a Museum devoted to Kemal Ataturk, open to the public, is possible today, in part, due to reasons that have to do with the vision of these two leaders.
I hope that the Museum, following the renovations carried out on an historic building, will attract visitors, because Thessaloniki, in any case, can help us to better understand the region of the Balkans and its long historical course.”
August 16, 2013