The host of the FUEN TAG 9th Annual Meeting were the Western Thrace Turks

Turkish minorities and communities from the Balkans to the Caucasus came together at the meeting in Western Thrace and demonstrated cooperation and solidarity. The 9th Annual Meeting of the Federal Union of European Nations (FUEN) Turkish Minorities/Communities Working Group (TAG) was held in Western Thrace, Greece, hosted by the Western Thrace Turkish community on 1-4 November 2023. It was organized jointly by the Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF), Friendship Equality and Peace (FEP) Party and the Western Thrace Minority University Graduates Association (WTMUGA), which together represent the Western Thrace Turkish community at FUEN, and brought together Turkish minorities and community groups from the Balkans to the Caucasus with the participation of the representatives of ten Turkish organizations from eight different European countries. ABTTF, FEP Party and WTMUGA, representing the Western Thrace Turkish community, attended the meeting; International Meskhetian Turks Association “VATAN”, representing
Meskhetian Turks; Kosovo Young Unity Association, representing the Turks in Kosovo; Crimean Tatar National Assembly (KTMM), representing the Crimean Tatars; Tatar Democratic Union, representing the Tatar community in Romania; Kırcaali Turkish Culture and Art Association (TURKSAD), representing the Turks in Bulgaria; The Ukrainian Gagauz Union, representing the Gagauz people in Ukraine, and the “Meras” Association, which protects and develops the Gagauz language and culture, represented the Gagauz people in Moldova. The participants had the opportunity to get to know the Western Thrace Turkish community and the Western Thrace region closely. Within the framework of the cultural and visit program hosted by ABTTF, FEP Party and WTMUGA, the participants were received by Aykut Unal, Consul General of the Republic of Turkey in Komotini, in the garden of the Consulate General on Thursday, November 2. After the meeting with Consul General Unal, the participants visited Komotini Elected Mufti’s Office, FEP Party Headquarters, WTMUGA Headquarters, Western Thrace Minority Culture and Education Company (BAKES), Komotini Turkish Youth Union (GTGB) and Western Thrace Turkish Teachers Union (BTTOB). The participants, who were informed about the activities and works of the said institutions and organizations during the visits, saw the
problems of the Western Thrace Turkish community on site. Following the visits, the participants visited Komotini city center accompanied by a guide and attended the cultural night hosted by GTGB in the evening. At the night, BTTOB Turkish Classical Music Choir gave a special concert to the participants. The participants, who went from Komotini to Xanthi on Friday, November 3, first met with the Elected Mufti of Xanthi, Mustafa Trampa, and then visited the Xanthi Turkish Union (ITB). During the meetings, the problems experienced by the Western Thrace Turkish community in the field of freedom of religion and freedom of association were discussed, and
participants were informed about ITB’s 40-year-old struggle for rights and law. A common road map for 2024 was created with the opinions and suggestions of the participants. FUEN TAG 9th Annual Meeting was held at BTAYTD Xanthi Cultural Center on Friday afternoon, November 3rd. FUEN TAG Spokesperson Halit Habipoğlu stated that they organized this meeting physically, hosted by the Western Thrace Turkish community, of which they are a member, after 2018, due to the epidemic and the subsequent Ukraine-Russia war, and stated that they want to continue all the activities they suspended as of 2024 and visit FUEN TAG member organizations on site. noted.FUEN Vice President Nabi İbrahimcik also gave information about the developments in FUEN in the last year and FUEN’s activities.
In the continuation of the meeting, representatives of the host Western Thrace Turks, Meskhetian Turks, Kosovo Turks, Bulgarian Turks, Crimean Tatars, Romanian Tatars, Ukrainian Gagauz and Moldavian Gagauz conveyed the problems of the Turkish minorities and communities they belong to and the activities of the organizations they represent.
The meeting, where FUEN TAG’s 2024 activities were discussed, ended with the determination of the 2024 activity program and common road map with the contributions of the participating organizations.
After the meeting, the participants came together at the cultural night hosted by ITB, and the ITB Turkish Classical Music Choir gave a concert at the night.