Turkey's national flag carrier Turkish Airlines (THY) will cooperate with United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) for the Sports for Peace Awards, company officials announced at a signing ceremony in New York on Tuesday.

Officials from the carrier accompanied Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres at the ceremony. A statement by THY which sponsors many major sports events including Euroleague, says the common initiative with UNAOC aims to influence the international community using sports' "uniting power" and on defending human rights.

An international jury will pick the winners of the awards and awards events will be a platform to bring together opinion leaders as well as prominent figures from the sports world.