The value of the diplomacy of the cities, which can be a “bridge” of peace, cooperation and development between the peoples, was highlighted by today’s meeting of the Mayor of Athens, Mr. Costa Bakoyannis by Mayor of Izmir, Mr. Tunç Soyer, at the City Hall of Athens, in the context of the visit of the Turkish Mayor to the Greek capital.
The two mayors, who sent multiple messages about global challenges and the need to find local solutions, had the opportunity to discuss strengthening co-operation between Athens and Izmir, especially in the fields of culture and tourism, through the exchange of practices.
In a statement, immediately after the end of the meeting, Mr. Bakoyannis stated: “We can not allow the Erdogan to hold hostage the relations of our two peoples. We must strive for stability, for peace and we, the representatives of the Local Government, must do it, “from the bottom up”, building bridges “. He added: “We welcomed to the City Hall of Athens, our friend the Mayor of Smyrna, a prominent representative of the local government, with a European orientation and open horizons. “Here, we had the opportunity to discuss how we can strengthen the relations between our two historic cities.”
In the same context, the Mayor of Smyrna, Mr. Tunç Soyer, moved, pointing out that “we can to improve relations between the two peoples and consolidate peace and development in the region. We believe that the future of humanity will be the sustainability of cities, and to this end we must first and foremost improve relations between us, for the good of our peoples now and in the future. Cities can not be enemies, they can only be brothers or friends. There are many fields in which we can work together, not only in culture and the arts, but also in gastronomy and food. For all these international issues, they can to find solutions through cooperation. “With the Mayor of Athens, we discussed and found many ways to improve our relations and consolidate peace and development.”
He himself noted that the Mediterranean unites us all. “We have a lot in common and we need to show our people that these strong ties can evolve, so that we can consolidate not only peace but also development and cooperation.”
Visit to the National Garden
Immediately after the meeting, the Mayor of Athens guided Mr. Soyer to the National Garden, where they had the opportunity to see upgrade works in the most historic garden of the city. Earlier, Mr. Bakoyannis had pointed out in the discussion he had with Mr. Soyer that “the climate crisis is defining the lives of everyone, both in Athens and in Smyrna, but also in the whole planet. So we are always trying to find areas for cooperation to strengthen sustainability and resilience policies. The work in the National Garden is an -recognized and internationally- example of an intervention, which belongs to the modern logic “.
In the National Garden, the two mayors visited the “Nature and Environment” Exhibition, which features 48 photographs by internationally renowned Reuters photographers. The Exhibition is held with the support of the Municipality of Athens, in the context of the annual international photo reportage festival “Athens Photo World”.
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