Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy inaugurated the Sultan Murat Mosque, which was restored by the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), in Skopje, the capital of North Macedonia.
Speaking at the opening ceremony held before the Friday prayer, Ersoy said that their common history and blended cultures always make these lands special and valuable for them, so they can never ignore the centuries-old shared experiences and cultural values they have grown together.
“On the contrary, we are always trying to own them and keep them alive.” Ersoy continued:
“Today, we are not only opening the 587-year-old Sultan Murat Mosque here, the works here are also a symbol of culture and brotherhood for the deep-rooted unity of our peoples and hopefully for the next centuries in which we will live together and stand side by side. It is also very, very important to protect and strengthen this brotherhood. These statements of mine are not just words, on the contrary, behind every word, there is the reality of the Republic of Turkey with its actions and actions.”
Pointing out that only TIKA has implemented more than a thousand projects in different fields, from education to health, from agriculture to vocational training and to increasing institutional capacities in North Macedonia, Ersoy said, “From Skopje to Gostivar, from Doyran to Strumica, from Radovish. From Ohrid, Tetovo to Konche, we can see the works and results of this cooperation in every corner of North Macedonia.” said.
Stating that there is no need to define these works with bureaucratic, political and official lines, Ersoy noted that their brotherhood, the foundations of which were laid in their common history, have been fulfilled and will continue to be done in the future.
Emphasizing that they carried out 24 restoration works for cultural monuments in North Macedonia, Ersoy said:
“Manastır İshakiye Mosque, Struga Mustafa Kebir Çelebi Mosque, Tetovo and Ohrid baths are just a few of them. The construction of the main house of Ali Rıza Efendi, the father of Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the Turkish Republic, in the Kocacık village of North Macedonia, as a museum, and the renovation and furnishing of the Monastery Military High School, where Atatürk was educated, are among our important cultural projects. has received. Today, the Skopje Sultan Murat Mosque, which is instrumental in this beautiful union, and the Beyhan Sultan and Dagestani Ali Pasha tombs in the complex, and the Clock Tower have also been restored after a comprehensive restoration. Opening such an ancestral heirloom, which rests on its shoulders with 6 centuries of history permeating its every stone, from its minaret to its pulpit and mihrab, to worship again, gives us the happiness and peace arising from the payment of the debt of loyalty to these lands.”
Minister Ersoy emphasized that these structures should not be seen only as historical artifacts, and that each one of them is the memory of the people who lived and lived on these lands.
Ersoy expressed his gratitude to the State of North Macedonia and its people for their support due to the earthquakes in Kahramanmaraş.
“I pray that it will be a sign of the brotherhood of all people living in North Macedonia”
Kadir Dinç, Vice President of Religious Affairs of Turkey, stated that the President of Religious Affairs, Ali Erbaş, could not attend the opening due to his busy schedule and conveyed his greetings.
Dinç said, “On the occasion of the opening of the Sultan Murat Mosque, which was entrusted to Skopje by Sultan Murat II, as members of the same faith, religion, common history and culture, as a sign of our brotherhood, whose roots date back centuries, and which was restored in accordance with its original form by our TIKA. I express that I am happy to be in the friendly and brotherly country of North Macedonia, and I greet you, my dear brothers, with my most heartfelt conversations.” used his statements.
Expressing that it is very valuable for his cognates and co-religionists to live peacefully in unity and solidarity, and to protect their religious and cultural values in North Macedonia, as in the rest of the Balkans, Dinç said:
“I hope that this beautiful work, which we have completed and opened today, is a sign of the brotherhood of all people living in North Macedonia, especially our Muslim brothers, and that our friendly, sincere and fraternal relations between our countries and institutions from the past to the present will continue increasingly in the future. I pray to God and greet your delegation with respect and affection.”
“Thanks to TİKA, not only North Macedonia but also the Balkans turned into a beauty again”
President of the Islamic Union of North Macedonia (Religious Affairs), Şakir Fetahu, thanked the TIKA officials who carried out the restoration and expressed his pleasure to attend the opening of this mosque, which is one of the symbols of the golden period of the Ottoman Empire, on a Ramadan and Friday.
Pointing to the importance of the Sultan Murat Mosque, Fetahu said, “Today, thanks to TIKA, not only North Macedonia but also the Balkans have turned into a beauty again. The Republic of Turkey, with its institutions and tireless work, has preserved this historic mosque in order to preserve its fascinating beauty for the future and to convey the words of God to the hearts and souls of believers and people in general.” he said.
Offering his most sincere thanks to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Fetahu said, “(President Erdoğan) takes great care in raising the awareness of Muslims around the world, especially in our country, the Balkans and beyond. May God help him in his fruitful life.” said.
Fetahu wished Allah to grant paradise to those who lost their lives in the earthquake in Turkey and patience to their relatives.
After the speeches, Mustafa Bodur, Religious Services Counselor of the Turkish Embassy in Skopje, made the opening prayer of the mosque, and then the participants performed the Friday prayer.
As part of his contacts in North Macedonia, Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy later met with Minister of Culture of North Macedonia, Bisera Kostadinovska Stojçevska. Ministers signed the “Türkiye-North Macedonia Cultural Cooperation Agreement”.