Istanbul hosts Asian Parliamentary Assembly

By Ayse Humeyra Atilgan and Burcu Arik

ISTANBUL

The 10th plenary session of the Asian Parliamentary Assembly (APA) started Tuesday in Istanbul with Turkey at the group’s helm.

The three-day working program will discuss cooperation on social, economic, cultural, and political affairs under the theme "Sustaining Peace and Development in Asia."

Delegations from APA member parliaments, including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Pakistan, Palestine, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, took part in the meeting.

The parliamentarians will exchange views, ideas, and experiences for developing common strategies for promoting peace in Asia.

Earlier Tuesday, the APA’s 2nd Executive Council meeting was held with delegates from each member parliament.

The delegates adopted the agenda of the 10th plenary session, and APA Secretary-General Mohammad Reza Majidi addressed the meeting.

Turkey took over the APA presidency from Cambodia after last year’s APA Plenary Session in Siem Reap, Cambodia. The APA will convene under the Turkish presidency for the next two years.

The APA started in 2006 as a continuation of the Association of Asian Parliaments for Peace (AAPP), which was established in 1999. The APA is made up of 42 member parliaments and 16 observers.

Each member parliament has a specific number of seats in the assembly based on the size of their population.

The meeting’s closing ceremony will be held on Thursday with the adoption of the Istanbul Declaration.