(GEN) TURKISH PRESIDENT: "LAUSANNE TREATY CROWNED OUR NATIONAL STRUGGLE WITH A DIPLOMATIC ACHIEVEMENT".

ANKARA, Jul 24, 2009 (TUR) -- Turkish President Abdullah Gul said that the Treaty of Lausanne crowned Turkish nation's War of Independence with a diplomatic achievement.

President Gul said in a statement marking the 86th anniversary of the Treaty of Lausanne, "The Treaty of Lausanne which led to the international recognition of the sovereignty of the Republic of Turkey was a milestone in our history. The Turkish nation never accepter the Treaty of Sevres which attempted to ignore its independence and underestimate its esteemed character. The Turkish nation proved its free and civilized character to the whole world by successfully concluding its War of Independence under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk."

"The Turkish delegation headed by victorious commander of the War of Independence and distinguished statesman Ismet Inonu, won a genuine victory in the eight-month Lausanne Conference by not making any concession from full independence. The Treaty of Lausanne was the record of political and financial independence of our newly established Republic," he said.

"The foundation philosophy of our democratic and secular state is to go beyond the level of contemporary civilization. Today, Turkey became a source of stability in its region and in the world with its developed democracy, sound economy and powerful armed forces. The foundation of the modern Turkey was laid with the Treaty of Lausanne 86 years ago.

The Treaty of Lausanne was signed by representatives of Turkey on one side and by Britain, France, Italy, Japan, Greece, Romania, and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenians (Yugoslavia) on the other after an eight-month conference in Swiss city of Lausanne on July 24, 1923. The treaty was composed of 143 articles with major sections including the Convention on the Turkish Straits and the abolition of capitulations. The Convention on the Turkish Straits was replaced with the Montreux Convention Regarding the Regime of the Turkish Straits in 1936.

(THROUGH ASIA PULSE)