QA-16, 20 May 2016, Statement of the Spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tanju Bilgiç, in Response to a Question Regarding the Anniversary of the Circassian Exile

During the fights that occurred in the invasion of the Caucasus by the Tsarist Russia throughout the 19th century and as a result of the oppression and persecutions that followed afterwards, hundreds of thousands of Caucasian people lost their lives and most of the survivors migrated to Anatolia.

This great catastrophe, known as the “Circassian Exile” in history and commemorated every year on May 21, has been etched on the memory of Caucasian people, who were exiled from their homeland, and opened deep wounds in their hearts.

We respectfully commemorate those who lost their lives in this atrocity, which constitutes one of the greatest massacres in the history of humanity.