Esteemed Members of Parliament,
Esteemed Ambassadors,
Dear Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Today we are gathered for the Gallipoli Symphony and the Gallipoli Photograph Exhibition, which are part of the activities to commemorate the 99th Anniversary of the Çanakkale Battles.

First I would like to convey best regards of Foreign Minister Davutoğlu who is not able to join us this evening due to his other pressing engagements.

I would like to thank the Ambassadors of Australia and New Zealand, who took the lead in organizing this event and the distinguished participants, who joined us this evening.

The Gallipoli Symphony is a 10-year project whereby ten leading composers from Turkey, Australia and New Zealand have come together. We express our gratitude to the composers for their excellent work.

This evening we will listen to Turkish composer Ömer Faruk Tekbilek’s symphony titled “The Trenches Are Empty Now”.

This event gives us the opportunity to commemorate once again Çanakkale Battles and our martyrs and to cherish the legacy of the Battles which is friendship and peace.

We all came out of this war as victorious since we transformed war into peace and turned Gallipoli into a scene of enduring friendship. I wish that this friendship will last forever.

Thank you.