No: 178, 17 June 2015

Mr. Antonio Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) will pay a visit to Turkey on 17-21 June 2015, on the occasion of World Refugee Day.

During the visit, we aim to bring the protection and other services provided to the 2 million Syrian and Iraqi refugees by Turkey as a country currently "hosting the largest number of refugees in the world” strongly to the attention of the world public opinion.

UN High Commissioner for Refugees Guterres is expected to arrive in Istanbul on 17 June 2015. After his contacts in Istanbul on 18 June 2015, Mr Guterres will proceed to Ankara to have a meeting with H.E. Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey, on 19 June 2015, and he will also have various contacts.

On 20-21 June 2015, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Guterres will also visit the Temporary Protection Centers in Mardin, Şanlıurfa and Gaziantep where the Syrians are hosted by Turkey.