Opinion

Germany from Izmir

photo_camera turquia-ruinas-izmir

 There are 2,957 kilometres between Hamburg and Izmir. Between the German city on the North Sea coast and the Turkish city on the Aegean coast. The difference between the people walking along the promenades of the two cities is more in the height and blond hair of the men than in the dress of the women. In Izmir, a city surrounded by archaeological wonders such as Ephesus or Pergamon, people follow the election results in Germany with a double interest: for what might happen to their relatives settled in any of the Germanic Landers (some say that the Turks are another Lander) and who send their remittances every month, and for what might change Germany's policy and therefore the European Union's policy towards Turkey.

When you talk to the city's mayor, Mustafa Tunç Soyer, of the main opposition party to President Erdogan, his concerns dovetail perfectly with the main arguments of the German election campaign, where climate change, the sustainability of the post-pandemic economic recovery and upholding the principles and values of democracy in the face of populism, nationalism and totalitarianism have been strong points of interest for German voters.

turquia-visita

There are 2,957 kilometres between Hamburg and Izmir. Between the German city on the North Sea coast and the Turkish city on the Aegean coast. The difference between the people walking along the promenades of the two cities is more in the height and blond hair of the men than in the dress of the women. In Izmir, a city surrounded by archaeological wonders such as Ephesus or Pergamon, people follow the election results in Germany with a double interest: for what might happen to their relatives settled in any of the Germanic Landers (some say that the Turks are another Lander) and who send their remittances every month, and for what might change Germany's policy and therefore the European Union's policy towards Turkey.

When you talk to the city's mayor, Mustafa Tunç Soyer, of the main opposition party to President Erdogan, his concerns dovetail perfectly with the main arguments of the German election campaign, where climate change, the sustainability of the post-pandemic economic recovery and upholding the principles and values of democracy in the face of populism, nationalism and totalitarianism have been strong points of interest for German voters.