First lady Emine Erdoğan visited a “children’s house” in the capital Ankara on Thursday where orphaned children from Ukraine are staying. “Children’s houses” are apartment complexes where children without parents are cared for by social services.
Erdoğan, along with Ukrainian first lady Olena Zelenska, had coordinated efforts to evacuate children from the conflict-ridden country to Türkiye. Dozens of children, accompanied by orphanage staff from Ukraine, were brought to Türkiye’s Antalya and Ankara.
Accompanied by Minister of Family and Social Services Derya Yanık and the Ukrainian ambassador in Ankara, Vasyl Bodnar, Erdoğan met with the children and played with them. The children were removed from an orphanage in Odessa as part of the evacuation the two first ladies agreed to coordinate after a meeting in Istanbul on Oct. 2. The youngest among them is a 10-month-old baby. Other evacuees included children with special needs.
Erdoğan handed out toys to the children and chatted with them in the company of their carers. She also discussed helping a 7-year-old child in need of medical care. Erdoğan later had lunch with the children, prepared on dishes sent by older kids residing in another children’s house in Ankara.
Speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA) during her visit, Erdoğan recounted her meeting with Zelenska about the evacuation. “I wanted to visit them personally to see how they fare here. Though this is a new place for them, I see they are happy. They are in safe hands thanks to the ministry’s staff and their Ukrainian carers. Of course, we hoped they would not suffer from this war and they would not be forced to leave their home country. I hope it ends soon and people there can heal their wounds and can safely return to their countries,” she said. Erdoğan also sent her greetings to Zelenska in the interview and assured her that Türkiye is taking good care of the children entrusted to the country.
The first lady said all countries have a responsibility to offer humanitarian assistance and establish peace. “All countries should exert efforts to end this war,” she said. Erdoğan said Türkiye has always sided with those suffering and will continue to do so. She said Türkiye may help evacuate more children in danger in Ukraine and it is already ready to provide humanitarian assistance.
