Brazil: Sao Paulo marks annual 'Turkish Day'

By Omer Yetkin Acar

SAO PAULO, Brazil (AA) - The city of Sao Paulo, Brazil held a special session to mark its yearly "Turkish Day" events in its municipal council this week.

In an opening speech, Turkish Ambassador Murat Yavuz Ates said on Wednesday Turkey and Brazil were both important countries of their respective regions.

"In the region, Brazil is Turkey's first strategic partner politically and its biggest trade partner economically," Ates said, adding that Ankara and Brasilia have enjoyed good relations for 160 years.

For his part, Municipal Assembly Speaker Eduardo Tuma underlined that Turkey and Brazil were two democratic brotherly countries with many potential avenues to improve bilateral relations including in culture and sports.

"Turkish Day", which has been celebrated since 2014, was also marked in Sao Paulo's State Council on May 24.

Among the attendees were Turkish Consul General to Sao Paulo Serkan Gedik as well as other officials from various countries including Belgium, the U.S., Mexico, Poland, San Marino, and Iran.

*Writing by Burak Bir