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Istanbul Mayor Kadir Topbas Visits New York

ImageBrooklyn Borough Mayor Marty Markowitz welcomed the mayor of Istanbul to Brooklyn, with a ceremony featuring a marching band and huge platters of Junior's cheesecake, a ceremony he says was paid for entirely by the Turkish consulate.

"Brooklyn -- proud home to America's largest Turkish-American population by county -- was extremely thrilled to welcome Mayor Kadir Topbas, the leader of Istanbul," Markowitz said.
Topbas, who also visited with Mayor Bloomberg, kept referring to Markowitz as "the mayor of Brooklyn" -- a title with which the Beep had no argument.

Although officials say the fanfare and diplomacy did not cost taxpayers anything, Topbas was given two gifts: a replica Brooklyn Bridge and a Brooklyn pillow.

Markowitz's five-day 2009 jaunt to Turkey was estimated to be a gift worth as much as $39,999, officials said.

Markowitz's other junkets over the past three years have included visits to the Netherlands and Israel, and a transatlantic cruise on the Queen Mary 2.

Last October, bowing to pressure fueled in part by a Post story, Markowitz pulled out of an all-expenses-paid trip to China.
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Last modified onSaturday, 06 May 2017 10:07
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