Melikgazi Municipality Mayor Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mustafa Palancıoğlu will travel to Brussels for the 30th meeting of the Turkey-EU Relations Working Group of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) on April 29, upon the invitation of Antje Grotheer, Chair of the European Union Turkey Working Group.

Congratulating Mayor Palancıoğlu on being re-elected as the Mayor of Melikgazi following the local elections on March 31 in Turkey, Antje Grotheer, Chair of the EU Turkey Working Group, stated that following the highly successful Working Group meeting hosted in Melikgazi in December 2023, this meeting will continue to enhance cooperation between the EU's local and regional authorities and their Turkish counterparts.

In addition, during the Expansion Day event scheduled within the program, Mayor Palancıoğlu will address the participants with a speech regarding the current state of affairs concerning Turkey and the EU. Antje Grotheer stated, 'Palancıoğlu's current role and active participation in the Committee of the Regions Working Group on Turkey Relations will provide invaluable insight to the participants about political developments.'

In her invitation letter to Mayor Mustafa Palancıoğlu, Chair of the Turkey Working Group Grotheer included the following statement:

"Dear Mayor Palancıoğlu, Congratulations on being re-elected as the Mayor of Melikgazi following the local elections on March 31 in Turkey. The European Committee of the Regions (CoR) will hold the 30th meeting of the Turkey-EU Relations Working Group on the morning of April 29. Following the highly successful Working Group meeting hosted in Melikgazi in December 2023, the purpose of this Working Group meeting will be to continue enhancing cooperation between the EU's local and regional authorities and their Turkish counterparts. Primarily, we will address the current state of EU-Turkey relations from a local perspective, focusing on both the new joint communication on the Situation of Political, Economic, and Trade Relations between the EU and Turkey, and the local elections held in Turkey on March 31, 2024. We will follow this discussion with a thematic session on the role of local and regional governments in natural disaster relief and preparedness, building upon the solidarity shown following the dramatic earthquakes in Turkey in February 2023. As usual, the Working Group (WG) will be attended by elected politicians at the local and regional levels from both EU Member States and Turkey. This Working Group meeting will be held within the framework of the Expansion Day event, continuing the next morning on April 30. I am honoured to invite you to speak at the event and address the participants in the initial discussion regarding the current developments in Turkey and the EU. Your current role and active participation in the Committee of the Regions Working Group on Turkey Relations will provide invaluable insight to our participants about the latest political developments. The main role of the Working Group is to strengthen the longstanding efforts to enhance the involvement of the regional dimension in the accession process and to support better political dialogue between the EU's local and regional authorities and their Turkish counterparts. We look forward to seeing you at the Working Group meeting on April 29, 2024. Best regards, Antje Grotheer"