Turkish Ambassador visits Mayor of Kraków

Diplomatic relations between Poland and Turkey were established as early as 1414 and are still successfully developed today. Turkey's Ambassador to the Republic of Poland H.E. Mr. Rauf Alp Denktaş has already had the opportunity to visit Kraków, but on 11 October 2024 he met with Mayor Aleksander Miszalski for the first time. A number of important topics were discussed during the conversation.

Kraków enjoys a lot of interest from Turkish citizens. The number of Turkish tourists in our city would be even greater if it were not for the need for a visa to enter the Schengen Area. However, direct flights between Kraków and Istanbul, launched in the spring of 2023 and operated by Turkish Airlines, are a great convenience.

The fascination with history and culture is mutual in the case of Polish and Turkish citizens, as successive generations of Polish high school graduates are interested in the history of the former Ottoman Empire. Kraków is home to the oldest Poland's academic Turkic centers, whose origins date back to the interwar period. The Ambassador was the guest of honor at a conference organized by Jagiellonian University to mark the 610th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Poland and Turkey.

A common area for Kraków-Turkish cooperation is also membership in the Organization of World Heritage Cities. Kraków, elected to the OWHC Board of Directors for the third time at a recent conference in Cordoba, will work together with Bursa, Istanbul, Konya and Safranbolu on heritage-protecting solutions.

Polish-Turkish economic cooperation is also promising, with a turnover of about USD 12 billion in 2023. After a meeting with Rafal Kulczycki, Director of the Kraków Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Ambassador announced the organization of a Turkish trade mission to Kraków in the spring of 2025. Mayor Miszalski suggested that the topic of the B2B talks should include our city's strategic projects, such as “Kraków - Nowa Huta Przyszłości”, Balice Airport, Zabłocie Cluster and Wesoła District.

Ambassador Denktaş also revisited the idea of building a Turkish mineral well in Kraków to commemorate bilateral relations. After minor changes are made by the Turkish side, the project - under the current procedure - will be submitted for an opinion to the Małopolska Regional Monuments Conservator.