The 12 trucks that IMM took to the cities of Warsaw, Poland and Constanta, Romania, where the victims of the Russia-Ukraine war had to migrate, reached the logistics centers of the countries in question. Veli Ağbaba, Deputy Chairman of CHP, and President of IMM Ekrem İmamoğlumet with the Mayor of Warsaw, Rafal Trzaskowski, at the “Temporary Reception Center” for refugees, reached by 6 trucks carrying humanitarian aid. The trio, who shared the pain of the war victims, gave common peace messages. There were emotional moments during the visit. In IMM's trucks; There are products in many different items from baby diapers to hygiene items, from children's clothes to legumes.
Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) did not reject the request for assistance from the Warsaw Municipality. Under the coordination of IMM, AFAD and Red Crescent, a total of 12 trucks with humanitarian aid materials were transported to reach Constanta, Romania, which is at the closest point to Warsaw, the capital city of Poland, and Odessa, the sister city of Istanbul in Ukraine. He set out in . 14 of the trucks reached Warsaw and 6 of them reached Constanta. Veli Ağbaba, Deputy Chairman of the Republican People's Party (CHP) and President of IMM Ekrem İmamoğlumet with the Mayor of Warsaw, Rafal Trzaskowski, in Warsaw, where the IMM trucks reached the logistics center.
THEY VISITED TURKEY'S EMBASSY IN WARSAW
Ağbaba and İmamoğlu visited the Warsaw Embassy of the Republic of Turkey before meeting with Trzaskowski. Hosted by Ambassador Cengiz Kamil Fırat, the delegation went to Warsaw City Hall in Plac Bankowy after the visit. In his meeting with Trzaskowski, İmamoğlu said, “We talked to the ambassador about refugees. He said you were very successful. I am very happy to hear about your success. I congratulate you for this. I would like to state that as IMM, we will assist your city, your people and refugees whenever you want. We are happy to work with you because of the friendship between us, but this is a responsibility, especially in humanitarian issues.”
TRZASKOWSKI: “30-40 THOUSAND PEOPLE COME EVERY DAY”
Trzaskowski, who thanked Ağbaba and İmamoğlu for their visit, expressed his feelings, “There is a long-standing refugee issue. Statistics also tell us that Turkey ranks first in the world in terms of accepting refugees, while Poland ranks second. Turkey is a very important partner for us. I think our friendship has great potential. As big cities, the Mayor and I are dealing with similar issues like global warming, equality and integration of refugees like other cities in Europe. But we also work under difficult conditions. We are both opposition party members, disliked by the central government. If we are talking about a full democracy, this is a serious problem. Therefore, our situation with Mr. Mayor is very similar.” Adding that they could not get enough support from European countries regarding refugees, Trzaskowski said, “We saw the peak in the refugee flow three weeks ago. 30-40 thousand people came a day”.
EMOTIONAL MOMENTS HAPPENED
After the meeting, Ağbaba, İmamoğlu and Trzaskowski met with the victims of war who had to immigrate from Ukraine and the volunteers who helped them at the “Temporary Admission Center” established for refugees in Berka Joselewicza 4 Street in the city center. The delegation, which received information about the work from the volunteers, also met with the refugees. sohbets carried out. The dialogue of her granddaughter Valerie with İmamoğlu, the Ukrainian woman named Anna, who is in the center, caused emotional moments. İmamoğlu consoled the Ukrainian woman, who could not hold back her tears due to the trauma she experienced, by hugging her. It was observed that the majority of the refugees were women and children. The delegation also made its evaluations about the visit at the center.
AĞBABA: “WE PROMISE FEELINGS OF SOLIDARITY FROM OUR GENERAL PRESIDENT”
“Dear Mayor of our Istanbul, who listened to the call of the Municipality of Warsaw and showed solidarity with it. Ekrem İmamoğluAğbaba said:
“We are here to show Istanbul's sense of solidarity. Unfortunately, both Poland, this region and Turkey are facing the biggest crisis they have experienced since the Second World War. Just as the Syrian refugee issue in Turkey is not only Turkey's problem, but a common problem in the world, the refugee issue in Poland is not only a problem for Poland but also for the whole world. That's why everyone needs to act in this sense, with this understanding. The refugee issue is unfortunately a very important issue. No one leaves their land with their heart. That's why the whole world needs to agree on this issue. Together with our mayor, we express our feelings of solidarity to the Mayor of Warsaw. I hope peace will come soon. I hope there will be no war. And the biggest victims of war, as you can see here, are women, children, innocent people. I would like to convey these feelings to you again. We also convey the greetings and feelings of solidarity of our party's Chairman, Mr. Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu.”
İMAMOĞLU: “WE ARE IN A TIGHT DIALOGUE”
Emphasizing that they work with Trzaskowski in a very close friendship, İmamoğlu used the following statements:
“We have been collaborating on many issues from the very beginning. He came to visit me and congratulated me. Since then, we have been in a very close dialogue. Actually, I was going to make a return visit, but we couldn't do it with a Kovid process. Today, Mr. President, we came to my friend Rafal, unfortunately, to help in a war, to support. On behalf of the 16 million people of Istanbul and on behalf of our country, with our stance against war and our passion for peace, we have prepared to support the children and mothers who are victims here. They are doing a very valuable organization here. They are in a good humanitarian aid organization, including children, women, mothers, even living creatures, dogs and cats. I congratulate both the Warsaw Municipality, the Mayor and all the volunteers here in that sense. This dialogue will continue. We will talk to them. What can we do next, what can we talk about? On behalf of our country, on behalf of our nation, and on behalf of Istanbul, our cooperation on this issue will continue. I wish the war to end and I wish peace to exist. Someone may start the war, but I think the saying that we must build peace together is valid here. I hope there will be a Europe in peace. This war did not suit Europe at all. I hope it ends soon.”
“WE HAVE BEEN LIVING THIS PROCESS IN TURKEY FOR YEARS”
Noting that the Polish authorities informed him that there are around 2 million 800 thousand asylum seekers in their country, İmamoğlu said, “A large part of this, nearly 400 thousand of them, are struggling in Warsaw. We in Turkey have been going through this process for years. We see this pain too. Therefore, perhaps we are the ones who will feel the best, and we have also made great efforts to announce the work at the refugee point to the whole world in Turkey. Everyone now sees that the issue of refugees and migration, born out of war, is becoming one of the biggest problems in the world. We must not forget that diplomacy is the solution, not war. I would like to express and add that the whole world should receive the message in this direction.”
TRZASKOWSKI: “WE WILL DEFINITELY CONTINUE COOPERATION”
Trzaskowski also said in his speech, “This is a very important day for us. We express our gratitude to our friend IMM President. We were already collaborating on different issues such as climate change, inequality in big cities. But now we have similar experiences in the biggest refugee crisis Europe has ever witnessed. We will definitely continue this cooperation.”
WHAT'S ON THE TRAILER?
12 grams of canned varieties (pink beans, beans, fried eggplant, soup, tuna fish, stuffed leaves) on 200 trucks delivered by IMM to Warsaw and Constanta; food parcel (flour, oil, sugar, rice, pasta, bulgur, olive, tea, chickpea); baby diapers and adult diapers, cleaning and hygiene materials (bleach, soapy water, paper towels, surface disinfectants, dust masks, liquid soap, garbage bags, etc.); shampoo, blankets and materials (adult clothing, children's clothing, boots, coats, etc.) supplied by the Social Services Branch Directorate.
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