Turkic States Civilization Park opens in Ankara as OTS leaders plant a pine by the Orkhon inscriptions

On 29 October, as part of the 13th Summit of the Organization of Turkic States, the Turkic States Civilization Park was opened at the Presidential Complex in Ankara. The leaders drove from the Complex to the park in Turkish-made TOGG T10X cars.

The opening was attended by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov and President Tufan Erhürman of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. Azerbaijan was represented by Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and the organisation by Secretary General Kubanychbek Omuraliev.

The leaders planted a pine sapling together and posed for a photo in front of replicas of the Orkhon inscriptions. The park has national pavilions of Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. A Kazakh yurt in the Kazakh pavilion reflects the spirit of the Great Steppe, and the guests were shown the “Saka Hunter” sculpture depicting hunting with birds of prey. Erdoğan guided his guests through a section with miniatures of Hagia Sophia, Anıtkabir, the Çanakkale Martyrs' Memorial, Göbeklitepe and the Selimiye Mosque.

Mehter marches were played and the Turkish Stars aerobatic team performed a flyover. In the evening the leaders watched “Dance of the Horses: Fire of Revival”, a show about the Turks' journey from Central Asia to Anatolia, at the Malazgirt Show Centre. The main session of the summit, the Council of Heads of State, meets on 30 October.