Pakistan’s Embassy in Ankara marks republic day

By Necva Tastan

ISTANBUL (AA) - Pakistan’s Embassy in Ankara marked the country’s republic day on Saturday.

Pakistan’s Ambassador Yousaf Junaid hoisted the national flag as the country’s national anthem played in the background.

Special messages from Pakistan's president and prime minister were read out.

Emphasizing the "historical significance of Pakistan Day," Junaid said that it "served as a reminder of the great sacrifices made by the founding fathers to establish an independent homeland for the Muslims of the subcontinent."

"We must reaffirm our resolve to make Pakistan a trivet of peace, progress and human dignity," he added.

Highlighting the longstanding "fraternal ties between Pakistan and Türkiye", he thanked the "Turkish leadership and people for sending congratulatory messages and joining Pakistan Day celebrations by illuminating bridges on the Bosphorus linking Asia with Europe in the color of Pakistan’s flag."

The day commemorates the Pakistan Resolution on March 23, 1940, at a summit of Muslim leaders in Lahore city in which the subcontinent's Muslim leaders set the agenda for a separate homeland for Muslims.

Seven years after the Pakistan Resolution was adopted, Pakistan became an independent and sovereign state on August 14, 1947, under Muhammad Ali Jinnah's leadership, popular as Quaid-e-Azam or the great leader.

On March 23, 1956, the country also adopted its first constitution, making Pakistan the world's first Islamic republic.