Mansur Yavaş hits out at US representative Barrack without naming him: 'They couldn't stomach it'

Ankara Metropolitan Municipality (ABB) Mayor Mansur Yavaş attended the August 30 Victory Day Concerts and Collective Opening Ceremony in Nallıhan. Yavaş stated, "They could never stomach us making this geography our homeland."

"An ambassador, who is also serving in Syria, is making plans there on his own. He is starting to advocate for the creation of small statelets, talking about countries divided into provinces and how national states are very bad, in a way that seeks to realize now what they wanted to achieve 100 years ago but could not. We are determined to follow in the footsteps of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who entrusted this republic to us, and of those who shed their blood to make this place our homeland for a thousand years; we will not let it be divided," he said.

ABB Mayor Mansur Yavaş attended the August 30 Victory Day Concerts and Collective Opening Ceremony at the Nallıhan National Garden. Nallıhan Mayor Ertunç Güngör, who noted that eight locations were opened, including the Nallıhan Family Life Center, the National Garden, the Kocahan Needle Lace Museum, the Nallıhan Animal Shelter, the Çayırhan Topduk Emre Mosque, the Çayırhan Ömer Halis Demir Park, the Çayırhan Lakeside Cafe, and the Çayırhan Family Life Center, thanked ABB Mayor Mansur Yavaş for his support to Nallıhan.

Yavaş said the following:

"Our Ankara has remote districts. Although these are within the capital's borders, they have always been treated like the countryside. Since my time as Mayor of Beypazarı, even though we were registered to the capital, we were treated like stepchildren; no one held our hand. When I was elected as the Mayor of Ankara Metropolitan Municipality, I made a promise to myself: I thought it was my primary duty to revive all the districts that had been left to their own fate as if they were forgotten, but which actually each have their own unique characteristics. In my first term, unfortunately, many of the mayors did not even come to congratulate me, nor did they ask for anything from us for their districts. I did not turn away any of the few who did come.

I said, let me elect mayors who will hold my hand to ensure a majority in the Municipal Council so that I can do everything in my power during my final term, and do whatever I can as a fellow citizen of Ankara. We are trying to do whatever we can for the region of every mayor who comes to us, without hesitation. Because municipal administration is the art of making the people living in one's region happy. Anyone can build a road or lay asphalt. Anyone can build a building; what matters is that the people living in that city enjoy, take pride in, and are happy in the place where they live. Therefore, every foundation laid and every service provided must be human-oriented and done in a way that people can use.

We are providing rural development support to boost the economy. We are supporting disadvantaged groups. We have also started our work to make these places destinations visited by thousands of tourists every weekend by having all the districts on the Silk Road join hands and hopefully launch Silk Road tourism. I hope and have no doubt that I will be successful in this regard because all the mayors on this Silk Road believe in this project and have truly embraced it with all their might.

They could never stomach us making this geography our homeland. They have had designs on this geography for centuries. We all know the maps drawn with a ruler a thousand years ago, and those who were unsuccessful when we were making this place our homeland, both in Lausanne and during our national war of liberation, are still attempting the same things. An ambassador, who is also serving in Syria, is like a provincial governor. He is making plans there on his own. He is starting to advocate for the creation of small statelets, talking about countries divided into provinces and how national states are very bad, in a way that seeks to realize now what they wanted to achieve 100 years ago but could not. He says, 'Strong national states in these regions are harmful to Israel's security.'

We are determined to follow in the footsteps of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who entrusted this republic to us, and of those who shed their blood to make this place our homeland for a thousand years; we will not let it be divided. We will not allow these designs, and we have no time for nonsensical debates. As Mustafa Kemal Atatürk said, we are directly patriotic and Turkish nationalists. When we say 'How happy is the one who says I am a Turk,' as expressed in both the sixty-sixth and forty-second articles of the Constitution today, it is never about an ethnic origin. The people who founded this country are called the Turkish nation. It is very clear. This existed in past constitutions, and it exists now. We never accept and we reject those who say, 'Let's change these again and redefine them.' How happy is the one who says I am a Turk."