"Istanbul strives to be European Capital of Culture for 2010
Thursday, February 23, 2006
Bağış: The candidacy of Istanbul for ECOC-2010 should be regarded as a sign of our commitment to the cultural convergence of Turkish civic society with the European Union Çolakoğlu emphasized culture as a means of communication, a cultural platform in which everyone can participate, a capacity-building process and a means of sharing its experience with other cities of Europe The co-chairman of the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee, Joost Lagendijk, says he was very positive about Istanbul and felt it would win "
More:Istanbul strives to be European Capital of Culture for 2010 - Turkish Daily News Feb 23, 2006