Mayors of Europe’s capitals discuss radicalization, housing issues

The Mayors of 26 European capital cities are gathering in Amsterdam on Thursday for the fifth edition of the Mayors Meeting. The meeting will be led by Amsterdam Mayor Eberhard van der Laan. The four main topics on the agenda are mobility and air quality, affordable housing, radicalization and the refugee crisis. The main aim of this meeting is to increase the quality of life for citizens in European cities while reinforcing and growing direct relationships between the major cities in Europe through the sharing of their knowledge and experiences. Since 70% of the European population lives in the cities, they have an increasingly important role to play in achieving the EU's goals, a public statement from Amsterdam city hall states. Of the 28 EU capital cities, 26 will be represented at the conference, Luxembourg and Nicosia are the only absentees. The EU Commissioner of the Regional and Ubran Policy Cretu, several members of the European Parliament and the Dutch Minister of Home Affairs Ronald Plasterk will also be part of the event. The event is held in the Netherlands because the country currently holds the EU Presidency. It takes place at the National Maritime Museum in Amsterdam. In the evening of 21 April there will be a public debate at Pakhuis de Zwijger, where Mayor van der Laan and the Mayor of Athens, Mr Giorgios Kaminis, will share the achievements of the day and discuss with the audience some issues, especially focusing on the refugees integration theme.