Traces of Atatürk in Bulgaria
Traces of Atatürk in Bulgaria
Working reports and historical documents written by Staff Major Mustafa Kemal, who was appointed as the first Turkish attaché to Sofia, the capital city of Bulgaria, during his duty in 1913-1915, were displayed for the first time at the “Mustafa Kemal Atatürk’s Sofia Days” exhibition in Sofia.
In the exhibition, which was prepared with the cooperation of the Turkish Embassy in Sofia, the Presidency of the State Archives and the Bulgarian Archives Agency, the T.R. There are 24 of the more than 100 reports Atatürk wrote from Sofia in the State Archives.
Speaking at the official opening, Bulgarian Vice President Iliyana Yotova stated that the exhibition makes new contributions in terms of revealing the unknown aspects of one of the world’s greatest leaders like Atatürk, the documents presented are an important part of Balkan history, and also providing important details and information about the first period of relations between the two countries.
Head of the Bulgarian State Archives Agency Associate Professor Dr. In his special statement to KGK magazine, Mikhail Gruev said, “Many of these documents belonging to the Bulgarian state archives are on display for the first time. In addition, the original of the first official agreement signed between Turkey and Bulgaria as the Ankara Agreement in 1925 is presented to the attention of the visitors for the first time. she said.
Within the scope of the event, the room where Military Attaché Mustafa Kemal worked 109 years ago in the Official Residence of the Sofia Embassy was refurbished in order to display the copies of the documents in the exhibition permanently, and was opened as the “Atatürk Room”.
Exhibition; It attracted great attention by the Bulgarian media, Bulgarian society and our compatriots living in the country.
The Bulgarian state television channel/bnt/the country’s highest circulation newspaper “24 Chasa” and private TV channels also gave wide coverage to the event.
The documentary film “MUSTAFA KEMAL’S SOFIA YEARS 1913-1915” includes information and documents about the work and life of Staff Major Mustafa Kemal, the first Turkish Military Attaché appointed to Sofia, during his 15-month stay in Bulgaria.
Turkey’s Brussels Ambassador to Bulgaria, whose previous place of duty was in Bulgaria, Dr. The project started by Hasan Ulusoy during his duty in Sofia comes to life after a long work.
In the program broadcast by Bulgarian national radio/BNR/, “The producer of the film, journalist Nahide Deniz and the director Ufuk Karakaş, consulted the opinions of Bulgarian and Turkish historians in their documentary that sheds light on Atatürk’s mission in Bulgaria, entered the state archives and collected documents and information that have never come to light until now. He shed light on Atatürk’s influence on historical events in the Balkans, Europe and Bulgaria. We learn that Atatürk accepted Sofia as a laboratory and conveyed what he lived and saw here to the Turkish nation.” words were included.
After Sofia, the documentary was also presented in a special screening with the participation of many visitors at the TOBB hall in Brussels, the capital of Europe.
Nahide Deniz