UNGA president-elect meets Turkey's UN envoy

By Sena Guler

ANKARA (AA) - UN General Assembly (UNGA) President-elect Volkan Bozkir hosted his first guest Thursday, Turkey's ambassador to the UN Feridun Sinirlioglu, in his transitory UN office.

“Ambassador Feridun Sinirlioglu, Permanent Representative of Turkey to the UN, has been my first guest in our UN office for the transition period as President-elect of 75th UNGA,” Bozkir said on Twitter.

He thanked Sinirlioglu for his “kind visit.”

“Today I met with some members of the international team that will work with me during my Presidency of 75th UNGA, in the UN office we will use until my assumption of Presidency on 15 September,” Bozkir said in another tweet.

“We reviewed the preparations for the activities and issues for UN’s 75th anniversary,” he added.

Bozkir is the first Turkish national to head the General Assembly. He will take office in September and hold the post for a year.

He was first elected to the Turkish legislature in 2011 following nearly 40 years in the Foreign Service which included posts in Germany, New York, Baghdad and Romania.

In the 2000s, Bozkir was Turkey’s ambassador to the European Union and worked as a deputy secretary-general and secretary-general for EU affairs in the Foreign Affairs Ministry.

He also served as Turkey’s minister for EU affairs and chief negotiator for EU accession between 2014 and 2016.