Statements by U.S. Officials
Remarks by Charge d’Affaires Nancy McEldowney at the Martyrs Monument in Keçiören on 9/11
Ankara- September 11, 2005
Sayın Belediye Başkanı, değerli konuklar ve çok sevgili arkadşlarım, bugün sizinle bütün kalbimden konuşmak istiyorum. Çünkü bugün sizin ve Türkiye’nin yakın ve sadık dostu olarak buradayım.
[Mr. Mayor, distinguished guests, and my dear friends, today I want to talk to you from the heart, because today I am here as a close and loyal friend of yours and Turkey’s.]
September 11 is a day that all Americans mark with remorse and remembrance. September 11 is a day when we grieve the dead and mourn for all that was lost in those terrible attacks four years ago. For September 11 is a day and a tragedy that is seared into our minds, and that burns still in our hearts. But on this painful day, we do not think only of ourselves for we know that others have suffered as we have. We know that others have suffered even more. The people of Turkey have borne an extraordinary burden. The people of Turkey have fought for decades against the murderous violence of terrorism. And the people of Turkey have paid the ultimate sacrifice in human blood and in human lives to stop the scourge of terrorism and to protect the democratic republic that they hold so dear.
I am here today, on September 11, the day of American tragedy, to pay tribute to Turkish heroes; to pay tribute to Turkýsh heroes who have sacrificed themselves to protect this nation and to preserve the democratic values that form its bedrock. The police and the soldiers who are memorialized here are martyrs in the truest sense. They are martyrs because they gave themselves courageously for a cause that is greater than us all. I am here today to join you and to join Turks everywhere in grieving for their loss. And I am also here to join you in honoring them and paying humble respect to their memory.
As we carry out these solemn tasks, let us also keep foremost in our minds the lesson of solidarity that emerges from this struggle. For the goal of terrorism is to sow hatred and division. The goal of terrorism is to drive peace-loving people against each other. And so we say today with determination and conviction that we will never allow that to happen. There can be no division between us and no double standard in our words or in our deeds. It makes no difference whether the bomb explodes in Istanbul or in New York. It makes no difference what slogan of hatred or distortion the terrorists hide behind. And it makes no difference whether the name is Osama bin Laden, or Abdullah Ocalan, Al Zarkawi, or Karayilan.
Let us stand together on this day and in this place to send out a message of clarity and conviction. For there can be no confusion. Americans stand together with their Turkish brothers and sisters to condemn the PKK and its murderous violence, just as we together condemn Al Qaeda. Together let us announce to the world that there can be no safe haven and no hiding place that is beyond our reach. For together we will hunt down and destroy the terrorists who seek to destroy us and the values that we cherish. Together we will preserve the peace, the security and the democracy that our people so richly deserve. And together we will honor all those who have sacrificed for this most crucial of causes.
I am grateful to you all for being here today on September 11, for commemorating with pride and patriotism the heroic martyrs of both our great nations.
Yeniden çok samimi olarak size tesekkür ederim.
[Again I would like to thank you very much indeed.]