Turkey’s Consular Services Hit 3 Million Annual Transactions

General Director of Consular Services Esin Çakıl told parliament that Turkish consulates processed about 3 million transactions annually, with 1.5 million already recorded in the first half of 2026 and expectations to exceed that figure by year‑end. He highlighted the surge in border traffic, noting an average of 47,116 daily passengers at the Kapıkule crossing and a total of 1.13 million citizens entering Turkey between 22 June and 15 July. In the previous season, 4.894 million passengers and 1.216 million vehicles used all border gates, 2.5 million of them through Kapıkule, under the government's "zero‑queue" objective.

Çakıl also raised concerns over Greece’s decision to close eight Turkish‑minority primary schools in Western Thrace, describing it as systematic pressure on the Turkish community there. Meanwhile, YTB President Abdulhadi Turus met Turkish citizens traveling to Turkey by road in Niš, Serbia, as part of the "Memleket Yolu" program, offering coffee and hearing travelers’ stories, emphasizing the emotional link between the diaspora and their homeland.