Murat Mercan officially appointed as Turkey’s ambassador to US

ANKARA

Turkey’s former ambassador to Tokyo, Hasan Murat Mercan, was officially appointed as Turkey’s ambassador to Washington on Feb. 24.

The appointment decisions of some ambassadors regarding the reshuffle at the Foreign Ministry were published in the Official Gazette.

Accordingly, Turkey’s Ambassador to the U.S. Serdar Kılıç, Turkey’s Ambassador to Ireland Levent Murat Burhan, and Turkey’s Ambassador to Serbia Tanju Bilgiç have been assigned at the headquarter in Ankara.

Multilateral Political Affairs General Chairman Korkut Güngen has been appointed as the ambassador to Tokyo, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hami Aksoy has been appointed as the ambassador to Belgrade, and Strategy Development Chairman Mehmet Hakan Olcay has been appointed as the ambassador to Dublin.

Mercan, not a career diplomat, was among the founding members of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).

Before being appointed to Tokyo in 2017, Mercan served as deputy minister of energy and natural resources.

He also served as the chairman of the Turkish Foreign Affairs Committee during the 23rd term of the Turkish Parliament (2007-2011).

Mercan also held the position of chairman of the Turkish Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and the European Interparliamentary Defense and Security Assembly (IESDA) as well as served as the vice-president of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (2002-2007). He graduated from the Boğaziçi University and received his Ph.D. from the University of Florida.