His Excellency Khalifa
Abdullah Dhahi Al-Ajeel Al-Askar, Minister ofCommerce and Industry of the State of Kuwait,

His Excellency, Prof. Dr. Lütfihak Alpkan, Deputy
Minister of Labor and Social Security of the Republic of Türkiye,

Excellencies,

The members of the Turkish community,

Our beloved friends in Kuwait,

Distinguished guests,

Hoşgeldiniz, Welcome, Ehlen ve Sehlen,

Thank you all for joining us tonight to celebrate the 101st Anniversary
of the Proclamation of our Republic.

We are honored by the presence of His Excellency Khalifa Abdullah
Dhahi Al-Ajeel Al-Askar, Minister ofCommerce and Industry of the State of Kuwait.
We are grateful for his contributions to develop the fraternal relations
between our countries. Thank you, Your Excellency.

I would like to briefly address the members of the Turkish community in
our mother tongue. I believe most of our friends would also understand, thanks
to the positive side-effect of popular Turkish movie series!

Kuveyt-Türk Toplumunun Değerli Temsilcileri,

Türkiye'den kilometrelerce uzakta, Cumhuriyetimizin 101. Yılını
kutladığımız bu anlamlı günde, bizleri yalnız bırakmayan siz değerli
vatandaşlarımıza teşekkürlerimi arz ediyorum. Şahsım ve Büyükelçiliğimiz adına
Cumhuriyet Bayramınızı içtenlikle kutluyorum. Hepinize sağlık, esenlik ve
mutluluk diliyor, saygılarımı sunuyorum.

Distinguished Guests,

Last year, we have celebrated the centennial of the foundation of our
Republic, which marks a new era of “Turkish Century” with 85 million Turkish
citizens and millions more worldwide. We were joined by Turkic nations and our
dear friends, brothers, and sisters.

As we are celebrating 101st anniversary of our Republic this year, we bow
our heads to the memory of Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of our
Republic, and to all the heroes, men and women who fought side by side and sacrificed
their lives for our nation's independence and unity.

In the past century, we have achieved the vision of our founding father.
Türkiye has surpassed the standards of contemporary civilizations, with a
thriving economy, strong democracy, dynamic foreign policy, and vibrant
society

One constant throughout has been our dedication to universal
values—peace, justice, human dignity, and the rule of law. These ideals guide
us into the future.

Today, we are also honored to mark the 60th anniversary of the establishment
of the diplomatic relations between Türkiye and Kuwait. We have joyously and
proudly celebrated this significant milestone through a series of events we
organized this week with the support of our brothers and sisters in Kuwait.

Türkiye and Kuwait have a lasting friendship built on shared values and fraternal
ties. Our partnership, which began modestly six decades ago, however tracing
back to hundreds of years in fact, has blossomed into a deep and enduring
relationship.

Guided by the visionary leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and
His Highness Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, we proudly describe
our relations as “outstanding” and a model partnership.

President Erdoğan visited Kuwait several times during the late Amir
Sheikh Sabah’s tenure, and His Highness Amir Sheikh Meshal most recently visited
Türkiye last May, during which six agreements in the areas of bilateral trade,
defense industry and investment were signed. We were grateful to see that Türkiye was the first non-Arab country
His Highness visited. Thanks to such frequent high-level contacts, our
relations have reached new heights, and we will continue to build on this to
advance our cooperation in many fields.

I would also like to remind that at challenging times, Türkiye and
Kuwait has always stood shoulder to shoulder. During the devastating
earthquakes in Türkiye, our Kuwaiti brothers and sisters extended their helping
hand with immediate assistance.

“Hard times reveals true friends”. Last week,
when we were shocked by the terrorist attack that took place in Ankara, at the
capital city of Türkiye, we once again realized that Kuwait is a true friend.
Against this heinous terrorist attack, Kuwait has shown its strong support and
extended its solidarity with the Turkish people and government.We are grateful for the exemplary friendship of the Kuwaiti people and government.

Esteemed Guests,

We are glad to observe that our countries share a similar vision for
regional peace and stability. Türkiye
and Kuwait stand united in calling for a just resolution on many regional and
global issues including the Palestinian cause. Moreover, Turkish and Kuwaiti
authorities have been shoulder to shoulder helping the most helpless in Gaza, becoming
one of the top donors in terms of humanitarian assistance.

As Türkiye, we firmly believe that it is imperative for all institutions
responsible for maintaining international peace and security, particularly the
United Nations Security Council, as well as the international community, to
take immediate and necessary measures to prevent our entire region from
descending into chaos.

Distinguished Guests,

Before I conclude my remarks, I would like to express my personal
gratitude for the warm welcome and generous support extended to me and my
colleagues at the Embassy by the leadership, government, and people of Kuwait.

I would also like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to
our platinum sponsors Kuwait Finance House and Al-Ghanim Industries, our gold
sponsors National Bank of Kuwait and LİMAK Holding, our silver sponsors Turkish
Airlines, MUSIAD Kuwait, and Kuwait Danish Dairies for their generous support
as well as our bronze sponsors MADO, Armada Group, Hafız
Mustafa, Ajet, Pegasus
Airlines, Jazeera Airways, Sun Express and Sky Art in sponsoring our event.

I would like to extend my deepest appreciation to our talented
musicians, Pianist Eda Seviniş and Cellist Umut Sağlam, for gracing this
auspicious occasion with their presence. I am confident that you will be
captivated by the exceptional performance of these gifted artists.

As we commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the Establishment of
Diplomatic Relations, I am also honored to present our exhibition titled “60
Years of Diplomatic Relations, Enduring Friendship Between Türkiye and Kuwait:
Documents from Archives.”

This exhibition features selected documents from the Turkish State
Archives, including press reports, diplomatic communications, and photographs
that illustrate the deep-rooted ties and enduring friendship between Türkiye
and Kuwait, a bond that has withstood the test of time. You are invited to
visit our exhibition in this hall.

In addition to our exhibition, we have prepared a commemorative booklet
to celebrate the 60th anniversary of our diplomatic relations. This booklet
includes selections from archival documents, diplomatic correspondence,
newspapers, and photographs of bilateral visits between Türkiye and Kuwait.

I extend my sincere gratitude to Prof. Dr. Ahmet Tokdemir, Director of
the State Archives of the Presidency of the Republic of Türkiye, Prof. Dr. Uğur
Ünal, former Director of the State Archives of Türkiye, Mr. Edip Gazi, MUSIAD
Kuwait Representative, Mr. Kağan Artur, and our Embassy staff for their
invaluable contributions in the preparation of this booklet.

Please also enjoy the Khatt Exhibition, featuring artworks from renowned
Turkish calligraphists, displayed in this hall. These artworks are presented in
collaboration with the SalSabeel Charity Society to support the victims of the
February 2023 earthquake disaster. For more details regarding the artworks,
please feel free to contact the officials.

Last but not least,

“Long live the Republic of Türkiye! Happy 101st
Anniversary!”

Cumhuriyetimizin 101. Yılı kutlu olsun!

May the Republic of Türkiye and the State of Kuwait
forge an enduring friendship.