Turkey's Anadolu Agency celebrates 96th anniversary

ANKARA

Turkey's Anadolu Agency (AA) celebrated its 96th anniversary Wednesday.

Founded on April 6, 1920, 17 days before the Turkish Grand National Assembly (parliament) convened for the first time, Anadolu Agency helped announce the first legislation passed by the Assembly, which established the Turkish Republic.

In his message to Chairman of the Board and Director General of Anadolu Agency Senol Kazanci, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said: "Anadolu Agency, one of the finest news agencies not only in our country but also in the world, is getting stronger in the international area by broadcasting in 11 different languages."

Visiting the agency’s Editors' Desk to mark the anniversary, Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said that agency provides an important service. "It shares the news from Turkey to the world. I congratulate Anadolu Agency, and I wish it continued success."

In his message, Kazanci told how the agency was founded during the War of Independence to be one of the symbols of national resistance against occupation.

"Anadolu Agency, which was the voice of the nation during the War of Independence, drawing its power from the nation, will continue to be the voice of our nation. AA will assiduously continue to declare Turkey’s story to the world while expeditiously breaking world news to its subscribers," said Kazanci.

Telling how Anadolu Agency was established at Mustafa Kemal Ataturk’s behest by writer Halide Edip (Adivar) and journalist Yunus Nadi (Abalioglu), Kazanci said that the agency is conveying its experience to a new generation of journalists, fulfilling the mission of its founders.

Kazanci thanked all the employees who have contributed and continue contributing to the agency.

"I also want to thank Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, and Deputy PM Numan Kurtulmus for their contributions to the progress of Anadolu Agency,” Kazanci said.

Anadolu Agency has 1,450 subscriptions in 45 countries and publishes news in multiple languages.

AA currently broadcasts in Turkish, English, Arabic, French, Kurdish, Bosnian, Croatian and Serbian (BCS), Russian, Albanian, Persian and Macedonian.

2,360 people from 79 nations work for Anadolu Agency in some 86 countries where it has offices.

Anadolu Agency, “the source of reliable news,” posts an average of 2,200 news stories, 1,900 photos, and 250 video news reports on a daily basis.

As part of its centennial vision, the agency aims to become one of the world's most influential agencies by 2020.