IMM President Ekrem İmamoğluOn the second day of his visit to Athens, he met with the former prime ministers of Greece, George Papandreou and Alexis Tsipras. İmamoğlu, who met separately with two Greek politicians, said, "The fact that the cities are together and have good relations will have a positive effect on the country's policies."
Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) President Ekrem İmamoğluOn the second day of his visit to Athens, he met separately with the former prime ministers of Greece, George Papandreou and Alexis Tsipras. After their meeting, İmamoğlu and Papandreou made a brief assessment to the members of the press.
PAPANDREU: “WE SHOULD WORK TOGETHER AGAINST PROBLEMS”
Stating that he was pleased to host Imamoglu in Athens, Papandreou said, "I had the opportunity to meet you in your previous position before I became the IMM President." Stating that he was impressed by Imamoglu's leadership qualities at that time, Papandreou said, “I think inter-city diplomacy is very important. Of course, working together is very important in the fight against the challenges and challenges we experience in the world today. We must work together to face these challenges that we cannot overcome alone. This is your intention, of course. Thank you for that. I wish the best for you.” Noting that he is aware that Istanbul has made a declaration of will for the 2036 Olympics, Papandreou shared that he was also involved in similar studies during his prime ministry.
REMINDER FROM IMAMOĞLU 'LORD AWARD'
Expressing his pleasure to reunite with Papandreou after many years, İmamoğlu said, “We had a 'Loyalty Award' that we started during my previous mayoral term. It was an award we gave for democracy and social democrats. Our committee gave an award to Mr. Papandreou for his contributions to both democracy and the social democratic world 4-5 years ago. This also had a special significance in my life.” Expressing that Papandreou is one of the people who have a special place in Turkey-Greece relations, İmamoğlu said:
“THERE ARE RELATIONS THAT WE NEED TO TAKE EXAMPLE”
“In this sense, it puts the history of relations between Turkey and Greece, the relationship between Atatürk and Venizelos, in a completely different place. Maybe they still made us feel emotions that we should imitate in all relationships. In this sense, in the relations between Turkey and Greece, there is the relationship between Mikis Theodorakis and Mr. Zülfü Livaneli, whom we lost recently, and he left us all very valuable and beautiful memories with the taste of art. Another relationship, really in terms of political relations, has given us very special memories in the very recent past. Those are very good memories that Papandreou and İsmail Cem have given us. This was not just a seasonal relationship. On behalf of our country, I would like to thank Papandreou for making this felt in every moment.”
Turkish Delight Surprise
“At the moment, I am in Athens with the desire to start a new relationship with these special relations,” said İmamoğlu. It will be a period of cooperation. I find this special meeting very valuable, especially in order to benefit from the experiences of Mr. Papandreou, who is very valuable, and to benefit from the beautiful experiences of Mr. Papandreou, especially during such a period when we started our Olympic journey.” After the speeches, İmamoğlu presented Papandreou with a box of Turkish delight, along with guidebooks describing Istanbul.
“GOOD RELATIONS OF CITIES HAVE A POSITIVE IMPACT ON COUNTRY POLICIES”
After meeting with Papandreou, İmamoğlu also met with the former prime minister of Greece, Alexis Tsipras. At the meeting, which was closed to the press, Tsipras emphasized that the democratic forces between the two countries should be in constant communication and said, "If this is achieved, the relations between the two countries will go further." Emphasizing the need to act together for the continuity of the friendship between Istanbul and Athens, İmamoğlu said, “I think there are more opportunities for cooperation between our countries than problems.” Emphasizing the importance of common sense, İmamoğlu said, "The fact that cities are together and have good relations will have a positive effect on the policies of the country."
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