Former U.S. President Barack Obama shared his visit to Istanbul during his presidency while addressing younger generations in his speech at the online program “Reshape Virtual Summit 2021.”
“I visited Istanbul (largest metropolitan city of Turkey) on my first trip abroad as the president, and it was wonderful. It is an extraordinary country with extraordinary people,” Obama said.
“The most significant thing I did in Istanbul was to meet extraordinary young people,” he added.
The 44th president of the U.S., who served between Jan. 20, 2009, and Jan. 20, 2017, especially name checked the Sultanahmet Mosque, also known as the Blue Mosque.
Stating that his visit to the Sultanahmet Mosque was an “enormous” experience for him, Obama said, “The Sultanahmet Mosque is one of the world’s special historical sites that astonishes you and connects you between thepast, the present and the future.”
Obama visited Turkey between April 5 and 7, 2009, in his first visit abroad as president. He stayed in the capital Ankara for two days and visited Istanbul to participate in the “Second Forum of the Alliance of the Civilizations.”
Hurriyet Daily News