Pundits believe that had it been only Istanbul rather than Turkey that applied for full membership in the European Union, the city would have been wholeheartedly accepted a long time ago.
After all, this vibrant, active city has millions of citizens, is the financial center of the country, boasts thousands of cultural activities and offers a magical atmosphere that makes visitors want to come back again and again.
Okay, perhaps that is stretching Istanbul a bit too far, but Istanbul certainly is the symbol of Turkey and all that the country is about. The acceptance of the city as 2010 European Cultural Capital ensures that it will spruce itself up with new cultural venues and exciting plans to attract more visitors than ever before.
To put Istanbul even further to the fore, city officials have traveled to Brussels in order to officially open the Istanbul Center there today. The aim of the new center just a few blocks away from the European Parliament building is to provide a whole new dimension to promoting Turkey using a special approach and a communications strategy up to world standards.
The official opening will be held late in the afternoon attended by Greater Istanbul Mayor Dr. Kadir Topbaş and Olli Rehn, the EU's enlargement commissioner.
The Istanbul Center in Brussels is designed to be a communications and cultural platform for the city's communications with EU organizations and corporations, and to foster dialogue with the public sector in Europe. Within the scope of artistic and intellectual activities it will ensure a continuous mutual influence between the public sectors of Istanbul, Turkey and the EU, and will be an important source of support and a loud voice as the membership process speeds up. Activities at the Istanbul Center will be based on three themes, “Art,” “Knowledge” and “Thought,” which will be taken into consideration when drawing up the annual program.
The Center, which was founded through a partnership between the Greater Istanbul mayor's office and Istanbul Kultur A.S., is designed to be a multidimensional platform. It is furnished with all the equipment necessary to host meetings, exhibitions and to conduct research. The facilities include an exhibition space, meeting room, conference salon and a valuable source material and archive center related to Istanbul and Turkey, in addition to administrative sections. There is also a kitchen that can be used for events.
The Istanbul Center in Brussels will serve as a platform for continuous relations between Istanbul and local administrations in EU countries, as well as EU organizations. It is expected that joint cooperation will be established in different areas with local and regional representatives in Brussels, and that through these ties channels of communication will be created to continually share the best management practices, the most up-to-date technical information and the most developed technology.