Athens, Istanbul mayors send message of peace

The transfer of the presidency of the Balkan Cities Network from Istanbul to Athens on Monday was accompanied by strong political messages by the mayors of both cities, Ekrem Imamoglu and Kostas Bakoyannis, on the need to strengthen democracy, peace and cooperation. 

Speaking in the shadow cast by the recent conviction of Imamoglu in Turkey and the international outcry it has provoked, the two mayors referred to the challenges facing the wider region, the dangers and threats and the power of cooperation in addressing them. Bakoyannis described the Balkan Cities Network as a "child of circumstance" and "of historical necessity." 

"Centrifugal forces dominate the region. We are distancing ourselves and being tested politically, while our peoples are closer than ever before. To put it bluntly, anachronistic and revisionist methodologies, petty politics and populist...