Following its construction during the urban development of Ankara, the Government of Turkey dedicated it in the name of the founding leader of Pakistan, Muhammad Ali Jinnah. A progressive Muslim leader, Jinnah was a known admirer of the Turkish leader Mustafa Kemal, sharing his attitudes on modernization. Jinnah desired to implement many of Kemal's policies and reforms. The dedication was also a symbol of the increasingly close relationship between Pakistan and Turkey, who developed important commercial, political and defence ties and co-operation on many bilateral and international issues. Both states were members of the Central Treaty Organization (CENTO), a military coalition of Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey, and the United Kingdom, created in 1955 and dissolved in 1979. Similarly, in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, one of the most important roads is named after Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. The Ataturk Avenue in Islamabad, Pakistan, has the State Bank of Pakistan headquearters, Residences of the Members of the National Assembly, government lodges and offices and Islamabads biggest hotels. A road in Karachi, Pakistan's largest city, is also named after Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.
