I got the information about Mustafa Kemal from someone who knew him very well. While meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the USSR, Litvinof, he said that in his opinion, the most valuable and interesting statesman in all of Europe does not live in Europe today, he lives in Ankara, behind the Straits, and that this is the President of the Republic of Turkey, Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. (Franklin D. Roosevelt, US President, 1937)

The first thing I wanted to do when my term at the White House was completed was to visit this most remarkable figure of our time in his country. Fate did not allow it. People of this caliber don't come into the world that often. (Franklin Roosevelt, US President)

Centuries rarely grow geniuses. Look at our misfortune that the Turkish Nation has been blessed with that great genius in our age. (D. Lloyd George, British Prime Minister, 1922)

The death of Atatürk, who saved Turkey in the war and resurrected the Turkish Nation after the war, is the greatest loss not only for his country but also for Europe. The sincere tears that people of all classes shed after him are nothing but a worthy manifestation of this great hero and modern Turkey's Ata. (Winston Churchill, British Prime Minister, 1938)

Mustafa Kemal was not a socialist. But it seems that a good organizer is a highly understanding, progressive, good-thinking and intelligent leader. He is waging a war of liberation against the robbers. I believe that he will humiliate the imperialists and defeat the Sultan with his wound. (V. Ilyich Lenin, Leader of the Russian Revolution, 1921)

Pasha, how can I not admire you? I formed a secular government in France. The priests overthrew this government with the help of the Pope's representative in Paris. You expelled a Caliph and established a truly secular state. How did you impose secularism on this society in this bigotry? The great work of your genius has been to create a secular Türkiye. (Edouard Herriot, Former Prime Minister of France, 1933)

Rarely does such a radical change occur in the life of a nation in such a short time... Those who have done these extraordinary deeds have undoubtedly earned the right to be a great man in the truest sense of the word. And because of this Türkiye can boast. (Eleftherios Venizelos, Prime Minister of Greece, 1933)

I am proud to present my congratulations to Turkey on the occasion of a permanent memorial facility for Kemal Atatürk. Your great nation, walking on the path that He has shown, has achieved very important achievements. This ceremony, held to commemorate the memory of Atatürk, the architect of Turkish unity and progress, is an apt homage to a person who has inspired free people from all over the world. (Dwight D. Eisenhower, US President, 1953)

Sakarya War, Sakarya Victory has been the strongest memory of my twenty years old. At that time, I was thinking to myself: Could I not mobilize my nation like this, instill in its soul the liberating move, this unbridled passion? (Habib Bourguiba, President of Tunisia, 1965)

I would like to express the loyal feelings of friendship that the French Nation feels towards the Turkish Nation on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the death of the Great Atatürk. History of Turkey is inseparable from Western and European history today more than ever. And Atatürk's efforts in this direction did not remain fruitless. The centuries-old friendship between our countries forms the basis of this development. (Charles de Gaulle, President of France, 1963)

By founding Turkey, he proved to all the nations of the world that he had the power to make the voices of Muslims heard. With the death of Kemal Atatürk, the Muslim world lost its greatest hero. Will Indian Muslims still be content with their present situation even though a leader like Ataturk stands before them as a source of inspiration? (Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Founder of Pakistan, 1954)

Kemal Atatürk is not only one of the greatest leaders of this century. We in Pakistan consider him one of the greatest men of all ages. He is not only the beloved leader of your nation. All Muslims around the world have turned their eyes to him with feelings of love and admiration. (Ayub Khan, President of Pakistan, 1963)

The first republic in the Near and Middle East owes its birth to him. This republic has risen to the international authority of many nations under Atatürk's rule, and its country has begun to play an important role in world politics. (Nikita S. Khrushchev, President of the Soviet Union, 1963)

The name Atatürk reminds one of the historical achievements of one of the great people of this century, his leadership that inspired the Turkish Nation, his foresight in his understanding of the modern world, and his might and courage as a military leader. Undoubtedly, no other example can be cited more successfully than the birth of the Turkish Republic and the deep and wide revolutions that Atatürk and Turkey have embarked on since then. (John F. Kennedy, US President, 1963)

Kemal Atatürk, or Kemal Pasha as we knew him back then, was my hero in my youth. I was very touched when I read about their great revolution. I greatly appreciated Atatürk's general effort to modernize Turkey. His dynamism, indomitable and indefatigable made a great impression on people. He is one of the builders of the modern age in the East. I continue to be among his biggest fans. (Jawaharlal Nehru, Prime Minister of India, 1963)

On November 10, the whole world commemorates with appreciation the life and works of a person to whom we, the Germans, are connected with friendship and respect. Atatürk always tried to establish close ties between Türkiye and Europe. (Ludwig Erhard, West German Prime Minister, 1963) 

We heard the name of Mustafa Kemal 50 years ago as a distinguished Turkish commander. Later, with the establishment of peace, he had the opportunity to reveal the characteristics of statesman, and as one of the great national leaders, he gained one of the highest positions in history. We commemorate that heroic and brave soldier with respect, and the real father of modern Turkey, the statesman, with admiration and gratitude. (Sir A. Douglas Home, British Prime Minister, 1963)

We have great admiration for Atatürk's realization of the Turkish Language Revolution and his efforts to modernize Turkish society by separating religion from politics. (Hayato Ikeda, Prime Minister of Japan, 1963)

I am the child of a generation that knows Turkish - German friendship closely. At a young age, I saw the heroism of a man, his services, and the sacrifices he made for his country. This man was Mustafa Kemal. Today I understand better that that person was a great statesman. It was great because he always knew how to keep the measure and could not exceed the limits that would endanger his work. He was understanding enough to draw the limits of his courage and his own courage. (Kurt G. Kiesinger, Federal Chancellor of Germany, 1968)

In our age, it is Atatürk who has made Turkey the modern republic it is today with his far-sighted, brave, political, social and economic reforms. At the same time, he is also the one who laid the foundation of the modern economy that enables Turkey to reach the power to enter the European Common Market. (Joseph Luns, Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs, 1963)

Soldier - statesman, one of the greatest leaders of our time. He has ensured that Turkey takes the place it deserves among the most advanced countries. Again, he gave the Turks a sense of self-confidence and endurance, which is the cornerstone of a nation's greatness. I take great pride in being one of Atatürk's loyal friends. (General Douglas MacArthur, Commander-in-Chief of the US Far East Forces, 1963)

West and East came face to face in Mudanya, a second-class coastal town on the eciş bücüş road, in the hot, dusty soil on the Marmara coast. Despite the murderous ashen turrets of the British flagship "Iron Duke," carrying the Allied generals to meet with İsmet Pasha, Westerners were coming here to beg for peace; not to ask for peace or to dictate its terms... These negotiations show the result of European domination over Asia. Because Mustafa Kemal, as everyone knows, had swept away the Greeks. (E. Hemingway, American Novelist - Author, 1922)

The most definite measure of a person's value is his ability to impose his superiority in his field to his friend and foe. Atatürk is one of the geniuses who reached this height. As a revolutionary, he created modern Turkey, was victorious in his cause and joined the great statesmen of our century. (W. Somerset Maugham, English Novelist - Writer, 1953)

I thought Turkey was dead after Sevres. But Türkiye is alive; Besides, since Mustafa Kemal took over, he has been living so vividly that all the efforts and all the possibilities of a Lloyd George cannot do anything but melt in the face of this violent will to live that defies common sense. (Claude Farrêre, French Novelist - Diplomat, 1930)

While our origin was a discolored spark, we have become a sun that covers and illuminates the world with His gaze. (Iqbal, National Poet of Pakistan)

Atatürk is one of the greatest statesmen to come and go throughout history. He never dwelled on the time he lived in, he saw the future and acted accordingly. It is this quality that distinguishes Atatürk from rulers such as Mussolini and Hitler. They acted thinking of themselves every time they did it. Atatürk used to see beyond himself, 20-30 years ahead. (Lord Kinross, British Statesman, 1960)

Few people in history have been as beneficial to their people and homeland as Atatürk. Let's live in peace, peace and understanding in our beautiful country, hand in hand, heart to heart, without turning left or right, to Atatürk's goal. ( Snork Kalutsyan, Patriarch of Armenians of Turkey, 1981)

Such geniuses only die in appearance. Because, in reality, they always live with his work that leaves deep and indelible traces on the understanding of nations. Such people are not born for a generation, nor are they born for a certain period. Such people are the people who will dominate the histories of nations for centuries by allowing their nations to relentlessly enjoy such a source of blessings. (Tehran Newspaper, Iran)

History has seen the greats. He saw Alexanders, Napoleons, Washingtons. But in the twentieth century, Atatürk, this Turkish son, broke the record for greatness. (L'Illustration, France)

The world has never witnessed such an exciting event as the re-establishment of Turkey in Western views and beliefs. (Social Demokraten, Sweden)

In no other country have women progressed so rapidly. Such a change in a nation is truly a unique event in history. (Daily Telegraph, UK)

During our freedom struggle, we were very impressed by the Turkish War of Independence and the principles of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. Atatürk's principles of nationalism, secularism and democracy were very effective in the development of my country. (Naman Narayanan, President of India)

On the day when the independence of my homeland became an international reality, the first name I remember after thanking God was Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. In the moments of depression when the doors of hope were closed, his epic life and struggle inspired me. (Habib Bourguiba, President of Tunisia, 1955)

Those who claim that the Islamic world has lost its power to raise great people should remember Atatürk and be ashamed. (Tehran Newspaper, Iran, 1939)

Atatürk is a lofty mountain peak on smoky peaks. The closer you get to Him, the higher he rises, and the distance between you remains the same forever. This is how it differs from its counterparts, which seemed large in their time and shrank in time, and will remain so. (Arriba Newspaper, Portugal, 1938)

The world has been impoverished by the death of this great man, the hero of war and peace. Atatürk was the first to break the policy of shackles, which the victors, who knew no mercy, tried to implement, with his power, his decision to overcome difficulties and his bravery. (Pester Llyd Newspaper, Hungary, 1938)

If history had a heart, it would surely envy Mustafa Kemal. (Tchang Yang Yee Pan Newspaper, China, 1958)

In a country where he abolished all existing ranks, Mustafa Kemal has won all ranks. The most honorable name imaginable in Turkey was given to him. (Marcel Sauvage)

Here is Mustafa Kemal standing in front of me. I look at him with an excitement that I can't help getting carried away. Once again, looks do not deceive one. The worker looks like his job. A long and stern face, a broad forehead with deep lines of thought, a chin full of energy, two icy blue eyes. Here are the first things that stand out. An extreme cold-bloodedness, a will that no power can bend, and an ability to pay attention and think that is tireless. Here are the features revealed by the face, which is almost dazzling because it is so motionless. (Claude Farrer, French Writer)

The intellectual revolution that Mustafa Kemal envisioned included a revolution that some Westerners would find simple, since it was necessary anyway. Mustafa Kemal, who is rightly called Atatürk, that is, the Father of the Turks, worked without arousing the noise of his initiatives and hopes. This is probably why the world knows so little about this astonishing work. This work is in no way similar to the work of the English, French or Russian revolutionaries. None of these countries has even thought of being able to touch language and writing. Neither Cromwell, nor Robespiere, nor Lenin and those who came after them attempted to lead the nation they led to change the philosophy of science, the management of thought, in short, the destiny. Mustafa Kemal is the man who did this and succeeded. (Georges Duhamel)

The Turkish Nation later named Mustafa Kemal Pasha as Atatürk. I think this is what comes to your feet; It is the most appropriate expression of gratitude that a nation can show to a leader who favors the throne in the heart of his nation, rather than the Ottoman throne. (Count De Chambrun, Former French Ambassador)

Mustafa Kemal is dead. The eastern column of the peace dome was destroyed. No one can guarantee peace in the world anymore. (Sanerwein)

Mustafa Kemal Turkey and Mustafa Kemal civilization, created after great difficulties, will continue to live for countless futures. He will forever live in the hearts of his people, especially in his words, "Turkish Villager, who is the true master of Turkey, and those honest and clean people." Mustafa Kemal: "We take our inspiration from life itself and the Turkish Nation from which we grew up." he said. Today, the Turks who have fallen on the way of Anıtkabir are greeted with an image that expresses their own selves, in the reliefs and sculptures carved on the stones on those long roads, "Soldier, Student and Turkish Villager who is the person of the Anatolian land". Mustafa Kemal died peacefully, realizing a great civilization he had built in his thoughts. The flame it burns will always burn. He's Turkish(The famous American Historian Charles E. Edenson was talking about Atatürk like this in his long article about the Turkish War of Independence in the history magazine Mankind, which has a picture of Atatürk on the cover.)

The soldier-statesman was one of the greatest leaders of our time. He has ensured that Turkey takes the place it deserves among the most advanced countries in the world. Likewise, he gave the Turks a sense of self-confidence and endurance, which is the cornerstone of a nation's greatness. I take great pride in being one of Atatürk's loyal friends. (General Douglas McArthur, November 1963)

Atatürk is not only a great figure in Turkish history, but also a great man of peace. His work that created the new Turkey will remain as a monument to centuries. (General Metaxas, Prime Minister of Greece)

There is an extraordinary leadership power in his captivating eyes. His thick eyebrows don't stay calm. High, intellectual peaks are lifted and cracked, carving deep lines across his astonishingly broad forehead. His skin is light-colored, sunburned. She is not brunette. Hair is yellowish brown. The clean-cut lines of his mouth and chin indicate the finality of his decisions. He's alert, quick-witted, remarkably intelligent. (Glayds Baker, American Female Journalist)

HE ; He was not a simple dictator seeking personal gain and fame, but a hero trying to lay solid foundations for future generations. (Walter L. Wright Jr.)

Anyone who studies Atatürk's views on the subject of foreign relations is always astonished by the value of his ideas and their meaning that transcends the time in which they were expressed. (Awra M. Warren, US Ambassador)

Our sadness for the great Atatürk's demise is so deep and endless that I cannot find the words to express it. Because Atatürk was not only the father of Turkey, but also the father of the whole song. (Vali Khan, Afghanistan)

During his last visit to Turkey, he wrote the following words in the golden notebook of Anıtkabir: "Atatürk could now die comfortably. Since the light is shining, the flame is burning and the country continues to advance..." (General De Gaulle)

Mustafa Kemal is not a socialist, but it seems that he is a good organizer, a high-minded, progressive and good-thinking, intelligent leader. Mustafa Kemal is fighting a War of Independence against the robbers. I believe that he will humiliate the imperialists and defeat the Sultan with his wound. (Lenin)

I have had private and official conversations with fifteen monarchs and presidents so far. I don't remember being so crushed as tonight. There is a mystery of great spiritual power in Mustafa Kemal. (Sir Charles Townshend, British General, 1922)

The personality of the victorious commander, who remained at the head of the state he founded with the absolute security of his nation until the end of his life, is an example of unprecedented character. (Comte Carlo Sforza, Former Foreign Minister of Italy)

There were times when he corrected what I saw as unique in his memories: "- No... I was wrong about that. If I had thought and done this, the result would have been more complete." Realism was what he was not afraid of. (General Charles H Sherrill, Former US Ambassador)

A man of strong character and with a firm and practical view of the righteous standing of his nation among the nations of the world, he never sought personal fame and promotion. This person, who put the interests of his country above everything else and tried to reach the most beneficial result for his nation, took his strength from the sense of duty that permeated his veins. (A. Rawlinson, British Lieutenant Colonel)

Atatürk saved the new Turkey with his sword and put it in order with his genius. There is no area where his creative spirit and fervent patriotism have not been activated. (Polska Newspaper, Poland)

He ignored the ostentation of the sultans and the attractiveness of the caliphate, and turned his gaze lovingly to the Anatolian farmer, who was the backbone of his armies. (Times Newspaper, UK) 

Due to the signing of the Ankara Agreement with the New Turkish State; The answer given by the French Prime Minister to those who said, "He shot us from the back, he agreed with the bandits on the mountain, with Mustafa Kemals" in the Parliament: If the hero Mustafa Kemal, whom you call the bandits on the mountain, and all his soldiers were here, we would have erected statues of each of them one by one. I am proud to sign such a heroic treaty. (Briand, French Prime Minister, 1921)

It, looks like a sublime mountain. They can not realize that loftiness living in the foothill. In order to grasp the grandeur of this mountain, it is necessary to look at it from far away. (Claude Farrer, French Writer)

"Germany sincerely joins the Turkish Nation's pain for this immeasurable loss. Atatürk was the first president to make a development that the whole world admired." (Beobahter Newspaper, Germany, 11 November 1938)

"Atatürk has completely succeeded in his ideal of creating a strong, vigorous and hardworking Turkey, respected and valued by everyone before his death." (Elenikon Mellon Newspaper, Greece, 11 November 1938)

"Atatürk is a great personality, a great commander, a political genius." (Excelesior Newspaper, France, 11 November 1938)

"Atatürk was the ancestor of the nation, a man of sword, idea, heart and will. This great son of the nation is also the greatest citizen of the twentieth century." (Slova Newspaper, Bulgaria, 11 November 1938)

"Under his administration, Turkey became a valuable member of Europe." (London Times Newspaper, UK, 11 November 1938)

"What Atatürk did is not something that human beings can do easily. He was a completely different person." (El-Misri Newspaper, Egypt, 11 November 1938)

"With the death of Atatürk, the world lost a great leader." (Gazeta Del Popolo Newspaper, Italy, 11 November 1938)

"Genius like Atatürk only die in appearance. However, they are always alive with their works. (Tehran Newspaper, Iran, 11 November 1938)

"We envy the Turks because they have a man of such a high degree of ingenuity." (Ceska Slova Newspaper, Czechoslovakia, 11 November 1938)

"No country has seen the changes that Atatürk's Turkey saw so quickly. The history of today's Turkey is the history of Mustafa Kemal." (Dness Newspaper, Bulgaria, 11 November 1938)

"Atatürk's victory led to a new stage in the life of the nation today." (Polska Zbrozna Newspaper, Poland, 11 November 1938)

"History will deserve the name of this statesman in indelible letters." (Policy Newspaper, Yugoslavia, 11 November 1938)

"Many, many revolutionaries were seen. But none of them did what Atatürk dared and succeeded in." (Messager D'Athenes Greek Newspaper, 11 November 1938)

"Atatürk is the greatest miracle of the twentieth century." (National Tidence Newspaper, Denmark, 11 November 1938)

The whole world weeps for Atatürk's death, as a great state, a great soldier, a great leader. England; He greets the great man, whom he knows first as a brave foe and then as a loyal friend. (From the British Press)

Every country; He will erect statues for his great men who lead the nation on the path of victory, prosperity and happiness. However, Turkey will have to dig through its mountains to find the stone that will be used in the construction of the statue of Kemal Atatürk. Because, Turkey has had the happiness of having a man who is envied by everyone, a man whose loss is a loss not only for Turkey, but for the whole civilization and the world. (From the Greek Press)

We Chinese all participate in this mourning. For, the death of the beloved great ancestor of a great nation left a great void not only for Turkey, but also for our continent and the whole world. (From the Chinese Press)

Atatürk was an outstanding statesman, one of the most important figures in post-war world history. Without Atatürk, Türkiye cannot be a great state. (From the Finnish Press)

I would like to remind one point in terms of showing one aspect of Kemal Atatürk's character. He was telling us about one of his wars. He stopped abruptly: You see, he said: I have won many victories. But every evening, even after the biggest of them, I feel deep sorrow thinking of all the soldiers who died on the battlefields. Is it any wonder that such a Chief, whose heart is so high apart from his courage and intelligence, has worked miracles for his country?... (George Bennes, Vu Newspaper, France, 1938)

Unesco Resolution On The Ataturk Centennial

UNESCO declared 1981, the 100th anniversary of his birth, as the year of Atatürk. This result has also been an indication of how he was understood all over the world.

The definition of Atatürk made unanimously by the 152 countries of the UN Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization of UNESCO;

"Convinced that personalities who worked for understanding and cooperation between nations and international peace will be examples for future generations,

"Recalling that the hundredth anniversaryof the birth of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of the Turkish Republic, will be celebrated in 1981,

"Knowing that he was an exceptional reformer in all fields relevant to the competence of UNESCO,

"Recognizing in particular that he was the leader of the first struggle given against colonialism and imperialism,

"Recalling that he was the remarkable promoter of the sense of understanding between peoples and durable peace between the nations of the world and that he worked all his life for the development of harmony and cooperation between peoples without distinction of color, religion and race,

"It is decided that UNESCO should colloborate in 1981 with the Turkish Government on both intellectual and technical plans for an international colloquium with the aim of acquainting the world with the various aspects of the personality and deeds of Atatürk whose objective was to promote world peace, international understanding and respect for human rights."

The Turkish Non Drowned in Sadness After The Death of Atatürk