TDBB 7th Ordinary General Assembly Meeting was Held in Istanbul
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7th Ordinary General Assembly Meeting of Union of Turkish World Municipalities (TDBB), which aims at cooperation and solidarity in the field of Local Governments in friendly and sister countries with 1,214 Member Municipalities from 30 different countries, was held in Istanbul on April 26, 2025 with
7th Ordinary General Assembly Meeting of Union of Turkish World Municipalities (TDBB), which aims at cooperation and solidarity in the field of Local Governments in friendly and sister countries with 1,214 Member Municipalities from 30 different countries, was held in Istanbul on April 26, 2025 with an intense participation.
The 7th General Assembly Meeting was held in Zeytinburnu Culture and Art Center. The 7th Ordinary General Assembly Meeting was attended by AK Party Deputy Chairman, Head of Local Governments Mustafa Demir, AK Party Deputy Chairman, Head of Relations with Turkic States Kürşad Zorlu, TDBB Former Presidents, Foreign Mission Chiefs and mayors, council members, representatives of local government organizations and invited guests from nearly 20 countries including Azerbaijan, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Palestine, Kazakhstan, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), Lebanon, Mongolia, Moldova, Uzbekistan, Somalia and Turkey.
Speaking at the opening of the 7th Ordinary General Assembly, President of TDBB and Mayor of Konya Metropolitan Municipality Uğur İbrahim Altay stated that they came together as representatives of a common past, a common culture and an ancient geography.
Mayor Altay said, “Our meeting under this roof with our mayors and local administrators from all over the Turkic world clearly shows that we are aware of the great responsibility that history has imposed on us. Because we are the descendants of Bilge Kagan, Yusuf Has Hacib, Nizamülmülk and Mevlana. We speak the same words, hope with the same prayers and dream the same dreams. Even though we live under different flags, our hearts are one, our wisdom is one, our essence is one. This unity is the yeast of our heart geography and the guarantee of our future. As the Union of Turkish World Municipalities, we are in a great effort to make this local voice louder. In this context, we develop common urbanization visions, increase our service quality through experience sharing, and establish cooperation to carry our cultural and historical values to the future”.
Stating that the world today no longer operates on a plane where only states conduct diplomacy, President Altay continued his speech with the following words: “Cities and local governments have become the new actors of international relations. Therefore, local government diplomacy is of vital importance for the Turkish world. TDBB is the strongest representative of this understanding. We are developing a diplomacy approach that focuses on our common past and common future, not the borders between us. As TDBB, since our foundation, we have aimed to further strengthen the place of our cities in global diplomacy, strengthen cooperation among local governments, share good practices and deepen our cultural ties. Today, we are a big and strong family that brings together more than 1,200 municipalities from more than 30 countries. In the past period, the world has faced many challenges, from pandemics to wars, natural disasters to economic crises. However, we acted with the understanding that 'There is mercy in unity and torment in separation' and we emerged from these tests even stronger”.
“This Union has always tried to be the voice of the oppressed”
Drawing attention to the systematic genocide perpetuated by Israel against Palestine, President Altay said, “This union, of which I am honored to be the president for two terms, has always tried to be the voice of the oppressed. Especially in the face of the genocide perpetuated by Israel against Palestine, we have realized many aid campaigns to stand by our Palestinian brothers and sisters.”
President Altay continued his speech as follows: “The Organization of Turkic States, which was initiated under the leadership of our President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and with the contributions of the heads of state of Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, has put forward not only regional solidarity but also an effective cooperation model at the global level with the visionary leadership of our President and the contributions of the esteemed member heads of state. Our President stated that we are the heirs of a bridge of hearts stretching from the Adriatic to the Great Wall of China, and drew a strategic horizon that will shape the future of the Turkic world with the might of its past. With this understanding, he pioneered the establishment of the Organization of Turkic States and took historic steps to deepen cooperation with the brotherly Turkic Republics in political, economic, cultural and defense fields. The vision of our President is not only limited to cooperation, but also the ideal of making the Turkic world an effective actor in the global system. I would like to thank and express my gratitude to our President for creating the Organization of Turkic States. We will continue to contribute to this vision of our President in the strongest way under the roof of TDBB by acting in line with his goals.
Stating that they will step into a new management period with the election to be held today, President Altay said: “I wish success to our new board of directors and thank all our friends who have served with great devotion so far. We will continue to work together for a stronger, more resilient and more brotherly Turkish world. I would like to thank our Vice Presidents, our host Mayor of Zeytinburnu Municipality and our guests who came to our meeting from Turkey and abroad.”
Parliament Speaker Kurtulmuş Congratulated the General Assembly
President Altay's speech was followed by a video message sent by Numan Kurtulmuş, the Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM). Wishing the General Assembly to be auspicious, Mr. Kurtulmuş stated that the Union has carried out successful services and emphasized that he sincerely believes that it will carry out much stronger and more successful works in the coming period.
Noting that TDBB is a very important international organization that brings together organizations related to local governments in the Turkic world and brings them together in the direction of common ideas and common goals, Kurtulmuş said, “I hope that in the new period, the Turkic world will go forward by further strengthening the existing relations in every field; it will increase cooperation, solidarity, and the ability to walk in common projects and common directions. In this framework, it is one of the historical responsibilities that we all have on our shoulders to make the best use of these potentials that the Turkic world has in the coming years, and to make the Turkic world an effective actor in the formation of the new global system that is taking place in the world.”
AK Party Deputy Chairman, Head of Relations with Turkic States Kürşad Zorlu, who attended the program, stated that there is a great effort, belief and determination behind the fact that an important organization like TDBB has come into being with more than a thousand members in more than 30 countries over time and thanked everyone who contributed to TDBB.
Emphasizing that three important results such as deepening socio-cultural and historical relations, establishing economic and technical relations, diplomacy and lobbying should be addressed in terms of relations with Turkic states, Zorlu said: “Today, we are going through a period in the world where our Turkic States, our geographies of hearts that bring us together, need to be more united every day, we need to know and understand each other more. There is a global hurricane coming and we see that this geography, in which Turkey is at the center, is facing a potential historical break that could affect the fate of the world.”
Mustafa Demir, AK Party Deputy Chairman, Head of Local Governments, who took the floor lastly in the protocol session, stated that they are not only holding a general assembly but also trying to keep the spirit of a common culture, a common fortune and an ancient civilization alive again together and said “TDBB is the name of a heart bond that transcends geographical borders. This union is the place where our hearts beat with the same values even though our languages are spoken with different accents. We believe that it will make a great contribution to deepen cooperation in every sense, especially in local governments, and to make the Turkic world stronger, more solidary and more visible.”
Noting that they have a great responsibility as the local administrators of the Turkic world in these days when the world is in search of a new balance, Demir said: “More joint projects and more unions are needed for the development of our cities, to keep our cultures alive and to increase solidarity. We should share our experiences and especially transfer our cultural unity and experiences to our young generations and raise them with this awareness. As AK Party, we have provided all kinds of support to strengthen this unity and we will continue to do so. We believe that this unity in local governments will be a solid foundation for the common future of the Turkic world.”
Moment of Silence for Martyrs in Gaza
After the speeches, the council committee was formed by voting. Founding President of TDBB Erol Kaya took the chairmanship of the Council Committee, which was composed of President of Union of City Municipalities of Azerbaijan Tamraz Taghiyev, Mayor of Palestine West Bani Zaid Abdelrahman Riwawi, Mayor of Kazakhstan Reimbekov (Almaty) Berik Duisenbayev and Mayor of North Macedonia Kalkandelen Bilal Kasami.
Without moving on to the agenda, Chairman Kaya invited the guests in the hall to observe a minute of silence and recite Fatiha for the martyrs in Gaza. Emphasizing that one of the biggest genocides of humanity is taking place in Palestine and Gaza, Kaya said:
“The massacre in Palestine today is the greatest cruelty and the greatest genocide in human history. In Gaza, genocide and massacre are being committed on live TV, looking into the eyes of 8 billion people. We only see the reaction of civilian populations and partly the expression of some heads of state. I would like to express once again with honor and pride the leader of our country Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's sensitivity to Palestine and his reaction to Israel”.
Annual, Audit and Financial Reports were Released and New Boards were Elected
In the general assembly, the presentation and release of the annual report, audit committee report, financial report were unanimously approved. Then, within the framework of the election of the new Union Bodies, the Executive, Audit and High Advisory Boards were elected.
Following the election of the new Board of Directors, Audit and Advisory Board Members, representatives of the participating countries took the floor and made evaluations and suggestions. In this framework, on behalf of the country delegations, Agron HAXHIMALI, General Director of the Union of Municipalities of Albania, Tamraz TAGIYEV, President of the Union of City Municipalities of Azerbaijan, Semir EFENDIC, Mayor of Novi Grad, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Abdelrahman RIWAWI, Mayor of West Bani Zaid, Palestine, Berik DUISENBAYEV, Mayor of Reimbekov (Almaty), Kazakhstan, Mahmut ÖZÇINAR, President of the Union of Cyprus Turkish Municipalities (KTBB), Mayor of Mamusha in Kosovo Abdülhadi KRASNİÇ, Mayor of Tetovo in North Macedonia Bilal KASAMI, President of the Union of Municipalities of Lebanon Dannieh Muhammed SAADIE, President of the Union of Municipalities of Mongolia Sundui BATBOLD, Vice President of Gagauz Autonomous Region of Moldova Viktor PETROV, Vice President of Mahallabay Agency of Uzbekistan Cihangir YULDAŞEV and Mayor of Adado in Somalia Farah Diriye WARSAME took the floor.
Palestine Declaration Issued, Israel Condemned
In the last part of TDBB 7th Ordinary General Assembly, Palestine Declaration was issued and Israel was condemned. The following statements were made in the declaration:
“We declare that we stand by Gaza and all municipalities in the region and wish mercy to the dead and a speedy recovery to the wounded. We are against such a racist attitude and genocide exhibited by Israel until the end. We want the aid to be delivered to the region as soon as possible. Any proposal that would expel Palestinians from the lands they have lived in for thousands of years has no legal value. Gaza belongs to Gazans, Palestine belongs to Palestinians. We condemn Israel in the strongest terms”.
Afterwards, TDBB 7th Ordinary General Assembly Meeting was completed with new Country Delegations, Board Members and collective family photo shoot.
At the 7th Ordinary General Assembly Meeting of TDBB, the members of the Executive, Audit and High Advisory Board were formed as follows:
TDBB BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEMBERS (2025 - 2028)
TDBB SUPERVISORY BOARD MEMBERS (2025 – 2028)
TDBB HIGH ADVISORY BOARD MEMBERS (2025 – 2028)
https://youtu.be/5skkZLxxnzU?si=zJ2oer0N-pVJ_NwE
| Name Surname | Municipality Name | |
| 1 | Uğur İbrahim Altay | TDBB President - Mayor of Konya Metropolitan Municipality |
| 2 | Mehmet Sekmen | Mayor of Erzurum Metropolitan Municipality |
| 3 | Fırat Görgel | Mayor of Kahramanmaraş Metropolitan Municipality |
| 4 | Sami Er | Mayor of Malatya Metropolitan Municipality |
| 5 | Yusuf Alemdar | Mayor of Sakarya Metropolitan Municipality |
| 6 | Halit Doğan | Mayor of Samsun Metropolitan Municipality |
| 7 | Evren Dinçer | Mayor of Aksaray Municipality |
| 8 | Savaş Kalaycı | Mayor of Karaman Municipality |
| 9 | Rahmi Metin | Mayor of Rize Municipality |
| 10 | Adem Uzun | Mayor of Sivas Municipality |
| 11 | Agron Haxhimali | Union of Municipalities of Albania |
| 12 | Temraz Tagiev | President of the Union of City Municipalities of Azerbaijan |
| 13 | Semir Efendiç | Mayor of Novi Grad, Bosnia and Herzegovina |
| 14 | Yahya Sarraj | President of the Union of Municipalities of Gaza, Palestine |
| 15 | Abilhayir Baypakov | Mayor of Aktau Municipality, Kazakhstan |
| 16 | Bektur Orazbaev | Union of Municipalities of Kyrgyzstan |
| 17 | Mahmut Özçınar | President of the Union of Cyprus Turkish Municipalities (KTBB) |
| 18 | Abdülhadi Krasniç | Mayor of Mamusha Municipality, Kosovo |
| 19 | Bilal Kasami | Mayor of Tetovo Municipality, North Macedonia |
| 20 | Muhammed Sadieh | President of Lebanon Dannieh Municipalities Union |
| 21 | Batbold Sundui | President of the Union of Municipalities of Mongolia |
| 22 | Evgenie Gutul | President of the Gagauz Autonomous Region of Moldova |
| 23 | Fazliddin Umarov | Mayor of Samarkand Municipality, Uzbekistan |
| 24 | Nihat Bişevac | Mayor of Novi Pazar, Serbia |
| 25 | Ekzam Gubaydullin | President of the Union of Municipalities of Tatarstan |
| 26 | Yavuz Gülmez | Mayor of Ahlat (Bitlis) Municipality |
| 27 | Nezih Yalçın | Mayor of Akdağmadeni (Yozgat) Municipality |
| 28 | Veysel Tiryaki | Mayor of Altındağ (Ankara) Municipality |
| 29 | Yasemin Fazlaca | Mayor of Altinova (Yalova) Municipality |
| 30 | Yasin Yıldız | Mayor of Bağcılar (Istanbul) Municipality |
| 31 | Hakan Bahadır | Mayor of Bahçelievler (Istanbul) Municipality |
| 32 | Mehmet Yasin Özlü | Mayor of Basiskele (Kocaeli) Municipality |
| 33 | Zinnur Büyükgöz | Mayor of Gebze (Kocaeli) Municipality |
| 34 | Hasan Kılca | Mayor of Karatay (Konya) Municipality |
| 35 | Mustafa Atlı | Mayor of Kozan (Adana) Municipality |
| 36 | Ahmet Cin | Mayor of Pendik (Istanbul) Municipality |
| 37 | Ahmet Pekyatırmacı | Mayor of Selçuklu (Konya) Municipality |
| 38 | Hüseyin Azizoğlu | Mayor of Sürmene (Trabzon) Municipality |
| 39 | Mehmet İhsan Tahmazoğlu | Mayor of Şahinbey (Gaziantep) Municipality |
| 40 | Mustafa Yalçın | Mayor of Talas (Kayseri) Municipality |
| 41 | Hüseyin Arslan | Mayor of Taşköprü (Kastamonu) Municipality |
| 42 | Ali Kemal Derin | Mayor of Tavşanlı (Kütahya) Municipality |
| 43 | İsmet Yıldırım | Mayor of Ümraniye (Istanbul) Municipality |
| 44 | Oktay Yılmaz | Mayor of Yıldırım (Bursa) Municipality |
| 45 | Ömer Arısoy | Mayor of Zeytinburnu (Istanbul) Municipality |
| Name Surname | Position | |
| 1 | Mustafa Kavuş | Mayor of Meram (Konya) Municipality |
| 2 | Erol Ölmez | Mayor of Kandıra (Kocaeli) Municipality |
| 3 | Adnan Öztaş | Mayor of Sandıklı (Afyon) Municipality |
| Name Surname | Position | |
| 1 | Erol Kaya | TDBB Founding President |
| 2 | Nihat Zeybekçi | TDBB 2nd Term President |
| 3 | İbrahim Karaosmanoğlu | TDBB 3rd Term President |
| 4 | Hüseyin Bürge | TDBB Founding Member |
| 5 | Murat Aydın | TDBB Founding Member |
| 6 | Dr. Özgen Keskin | Educator-Author |
| 7 | Prof. Dr. R. Deniz Özbay | Istanbul Ticaret University Faculty Member |
| 8 | Prof. Dr. İlyas Kemaloğlu | Marmara University Faculty Member |
| 9 | Prof. Dr. Adem Esen | Istanbul University Faculty Member |
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