The Greeks of Pontus and the Ankara Government in the British and American Press

The Ottoman Empire withdrew from the First World War on October 30, 1918, with the Armistice of Mondros. The Entente states continued to occupy the lands of the Ottoman Empire by using the 7th and 24th articles of the armistice as an excuse. In this process, although the Istanbul Government thought that resistance against the occupation of the Entente states was not possible, the National Struggle movement started in Anatolia under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Pasha. On April 23, 1920, the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye opened in Ankara and became the true representative of the Turkish nation under occupation. The Ankara Government, which led the National Struggle, succeeded in expelling the enemy from the country with a great victory on August 30, 1922. This process was not easy at all. On the one hand, the Ankara Government fought against the Greeks and other Entente states, and on the other hand, it dealt with many problems within the country. One of the most important of these is undoubtedly the Pontus issue. Domestically, the Pontic revolt also found support from the Entente states. Since the activities of the Greek separatists reached the highest level during the most critical days of the War of Independence, the Central Army was established on December 9, 1920. Pontus was not just an internal rebellion, but a problem of the Northern Front of the War of Independence, and so an army was raised against them. In addition, this rebellion, which Ankara was dealing with in its internal affairs was also covered in the British and American press. Aiming to establish a Pontic state, the Greeks sent letters to the foreign press and invited them to intervene in Anatolia in their favor. They communicated every measure taken against them, including the activities of the Central Army, especially to the British and American press. Although Greek separatists were not successful in achieving their goals, their activities continued until early 1923. In this chapter, the reflections of the Pontus issue in the British and American press between 1919 and 1923 are analyzed. The lynching policy that the Ankara Government was subjected to in the foreign press while fighting against the Greek separatists was also analyzed.

Click to cite.

Note: You can access the citation text via the ‘Actions’ tab in Crossref.