‘Erdogan Appoints Ambassador’ –

Turkey has appointed Şakir Özkan Torunlar as ambassador to Israel through a presidential decree signed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The move comes shortly after Israel appointed Irid Lilian, the current Ankara charge d’affaires, as ambassador to Turkey.

Dorunler was the Turkish Ambassador to Bangladesh in 2008-2010 and Consul General in Jerusalem between 2010 and 2014.

From 2017 to 2021, he was the Ambassador of Turkey to India. Torunler has been the Director of Bilateral Political Affairs (South Asia) at the Ministry of External Affairs since 2014.

Dorenler became Tel Aviv ambassador four years after the two countries cut diplomatic ties following the United States’ decision to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in 2018.

🇹🇷🇮🇱 #Israelinside (@Israel’s Turkey) #Turkey Byukelcc Lillian @IridLillianThe foreign ministries of the two countries formed a high-level committee to resolve disputes and prevent a crisis pic.twitter.com/c3W6XtWZ6T

— 🇹🇷 Mavi Vathan (@Patrie_Bleue) October 4, 2022

Relations between the two countries have been strained over the past decade, first by the “one-minute” crisis in Davos and later by the killing of 10 Turks by Israeli commandos in an incident known as the Mavi Marmara crisis.

Turkey and Israel have been in a reconciliation process since late 2021 to restore sour relations between the two regional neighbors.

President Erdogan and Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Yair Lapid have made high-level contacts in recent months to facilitate normalization.

The two foreign ministers announced the decision to increase mutual diplomatic representation at a meeting earlier this summer.

Meanwhile, Deputy Foreign Minister Sedat Önal has been appointed Turkey’s Ambassador to the United Nations, while Deputy Foreign Minister Faruk Kaymakcı has been appointed EU Ambassador.

Ankara has appointed Ambassador Zeki Levent Kumruku as the country’s permanent representative to NATO.

Source: Hurriyat