Conversion of Abandoned NATO Base into a Tourist Site

Turkish authorities announced that an abandoned NATO base in Trabzon Province will be transformed into a tourist site. This was reported by the Anadolu Agency, quoting Machka District Governor Koray Kutchkan, who stated, "We exchanged ideas about the necessity of making the (NATO) base a tourist attraction, and we will submit the prepared project to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. The base will be transferred under the control of the province in the near future, and we will work to make Trabzon a new tourist destination." Local media reported that Kutchkan mentioned plans to use the base as a tourist site since 2017 and 2021, but the project had not progressed since then. The NATO radar base in the Machka area of Trabzon Province on the Black Sea was utilized by the alliance during the height of the Cold War due to its proximity to the Soviet Union and has been abandoned since 2010. Last week, several deputies from the ruling Justice and Development Party visited this base.