Antalya, the Mediterranean city which hosts a sizeable Russian population, has named a street after Andrey Karlov, the Russian ambassador assassinated in Ankara in 2016, and launched a week dedicated to the late diplomat.

Local officials, Karlov's wife Marina Karlova and officials from Klintsy, hometown of the slain diplomat, attended a ceremony for the inauguration of the street named after Karlov in Demre, a district of Antalya. Prior to the ceremony, Turkish officials and incumbent Russian Ambassador Alexei Yerkhov unveiled a photo exhibition entitled "Andrey Karlov: Journey to Immortality" that consists photos of the late diplomat.

The Russian ambassador had sought to improve ties between Demre and his hometown prior to his death and the two signed a protocol to become sister cities last year as Karlov desired.

Antalya and the Demre municipality officially designated the last week of March as a memorial week for the late diplomat, with events focusing on his life and promoting Russian-Turkish ties. Karlov is known for his work to patch up strained relations between Turkey and Russia after the Turkish army shot down a Russian warplane in 2015. He was speaking at the opening of an exhibition in an art gallery in Ankara when Mevlüt Mert Altıntaş shot him dead. Altıntaş, a police officer with ties to Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) was killed in the shootout with police that followed.