State Dinner

May I greet you: Your Excellency, Abdullah Gul, President of Turkey and Mrs Gul; Your Excellency,  Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Prime Minister of Turkey and Mrs Erdogan; Your Excellency Hamish Cooper, Ambassador for New Zealand to Turkey; Distinguished Guests otherwise; Ladies and Gentlemen.

It is a great honour for a New Zealand Governor-General to be received here in the Cankaya Presidential Palace, this historic symbol of the Republic of Turkey.

How fitting to meet in this house, with its associations to Turkey's founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, who is also the father of New Zealand's relationship with Turkey.

Yesterday, I came to Ankara from the Gallipoli Peninsula, where I represented our country at the annual ANZAC Day commemorations.

The Peninsula and the battle that took place there in 1915 had far-reaching consequences for both countries.  Kemal Ataturk won fame and went on to transform Turkey into an independent, democratic, secular nation-state.

Similarly, at Gallipoli, New Zealanders realised that their country was more than an adjunct of the British Empire.  Our destiny, like that of Turkey, was to emerge as a modern, independent nation.

Ataturk was a man of vision.  He had a clear understanding that Turkey's future could only be secure if it was settled as a nation, within a region and within a world at peace. He held out his hand to New Zealand, and to other countries that had been foes at Gallipoli.  That noble gesture secured his place in the hearts of New Zealanders.

Since the time of Ataturk, New Zealand and Turkey have worked together in many areas overcoming the distance that separates us and the differences of language and culture.

Today we have many shared interests that comprise the basis of modern, productive and much valued relationships.  Distance, and lack of familiarity are no longer the barriers they once were.  We have developed agreements for veterinary and phytosanitary cooperation, air services, avoidance of double taxation, and education, among others.

New Zealand recognises that Turkey is strategically positioned, in geographical, political and cultural terms.   Turkey plays a vital role in all the regions that surround it, representing a voice for stability, dialogue and reconciliation in a region that is prone to division and in favouring confrontation over dialogue.  New Zealand applauds the constructive and balanced approach Turkey has taken.

Like Turkey, New Zealand has long seen it as our country's duty to play our part in upholding international order, the rule of law and respect for human rights and freedoms wherever in the world that they may have been under most threat.  In your region, we remain heavily committed to peace building initiatives in Afghanistan and within the Middle East.

With our many shared interests, we now we look to the future of our relationship.

There are numerous trade opportunities in both our countries requiring action by the private sector.  There are also many areas where our two Governments can continue to work together.

But the future lies in strengthening the mutual knowledge, understanding and exchanges between our peoples, our societies, and our cultures. 

Turkey has taken a leading role in the Alliance of Civilisations, the high-level international dialogue that seeks to promote the path of intercultural and intercivilisational understanding, in the face of current manifestations of ignorance and extremism.  New Zealand welcomes Turkey's role in this endeavour and wishes to work more closely with this country to promote the Alliance and its objectives.

In promoting international and intercultural understanding, educational exchanges, and other opportunities for our young people to gain knowledge and experience of our respective countries, are equally important.

We welcome the 100 government scholarships the Turkish Government has earmarked for young people to study in New Zealand.  We wish to explore what opportunities might be open to New Zealanders to study in Turkey.

Our Governments are also negotiating a working holiday scheme, to allow qualified young Turks and New Zealanders an opportunity for real life experiences obtained through travel and work. 

Finally we can look more closely at our past, to ensure that it remains a living inspiration for future generations. One example is the proposal by our two Prime Ministers for a joint historical review of our experience at Gallipoli. 

Your Excellency, Gallipoli was a crucial event in the history of our two modern nations.  As we look forward we should try to ensure that Kemal Ataturk's words of reconciliation, which are engraved on the Ataturk Memorial in Wellington, never lose their force, or their ability to inspire future generations.  The words read:  "Those heroes who shed their blood and lost their lives, you are now lying in the soil of a friendly country.  Therefore rest in peace.  After having lost their lives on this land, they have become our sons as well."   

May I assure Your Excellency that this gesture of reconciliation means that when the sons and daughters of Turkey visit New Zealand, they will find an equally friendly country. 

Bu guzel ziyaret icin tesekkur ederim ve dost Turk Halkina esenlikler dilerim ("Thank you for this wonderful visit and I wish all happiness to the friendly people of Turkey").

May I now propose a toast which is in three parts:

• To the health and prosperity of Your Excellency President Abdullah Gul, sherefe (toast!)
• To the prosperity and progress of the people of the Republic of Turkey, sherefe
• And to the growing friendship between the peoples of Turkey and New Zealand, sherefe

I would like to conclude in New Zealand's first language, Māori, offering greetings and wishing everyone good health and fortitude in your endeavours. 

No reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, kia ora, kia kaha, tēnā koutou katoa.