On April 11, 2014, Minister of Foreign Affair Mr. Ahmet Davutoğlu visited Kushimoto where the Ertuğrul Frigate sunk in 1890, as part of his contacts in Japan.

Foreign Minister Davutoğlu paid his memorial service to the Ertuğrul Monument. Foreign Minister Davutoğlu also met with students and teachers of the Oshima Primary School which takes care of the Monument and visited the Turkish Museum.

Addressing the students at the Oshima Primary School, Foreign Minister Davutoğlu emphasized that it is very important for Turkish people that the students wholeheartedly undertake maintenance and cleaning of the Ertuğrul Monument and endeavor to understand Turkish culture and Turkey more closely. He invited the students to Turkey for the April 23rd International Children’s Day.

Foreign Minister Davutoğlu, during the commemoration service at the Ertuğrul Monument stated that they have gathered to commemorate the martyred Turkish sailors who came to Japan with a view to developing the Japanese-Turkish friendship and to further familiarizing the two deep-rooted cultures with each other. Foreign Minister Davutoğlu stressed that the people of Kushimoto made a great effort to save the crew of the Ertuğrul Frigate and shared their limited facilities with the survivors.

Brief Story of Ertuğrul Frigate.