Author Archives: Ali Tuygan

Unknown's avatar

About Ali Tuygan

Ali Tuygan is a graduate of the Faculty of Political Sciences of Ankara University. He joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in January 1967. Between various positions in Ankara, he served at the Turkish Embassy in Brussels, NATO International Staff, Turkish Embassies in Washington and Baghdad, and the Turkish Delegation to NATO. From 1986 to 1989 he was the Principal Private Secretary to the President of the Republic. He then served as ambassador to Ottawa, Riyadh, and Athens. In 1997 he was honored with a decoration by the Italian President. Between these assignments abroad he served twice as Deputy Undersecretary for Political Affairs. In 2004 he was appointed Undersecretary where he remained until the end of 2006 before going to his last foreign assignment as Ambassador to UNESCO. He retired in 2009. In April 2013 he published a book entitled “Gönüllü Diplomat, Dışişlerinde Kırk Yıl” (“Diplomat by Choice, Forty Years in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs”) in which he elaborated on the diplomatic profession and the main issues on the global agenda. He has published articles in Turkish periodicals and newspapers.

A Brief Story of the Gaza Ceasefire Talks

August 23, 2024 The October 7 Hamas onslaught was a shock to Israel, but also to Washington because with the Abraham Accords, it seemed that the US could put its Middle East troubles behind and focus on its strategic competition … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Gaza Ceasefire Talks Should No Longer Be a Distraction

August 19, 2024 Since the Hamas onslaught of October 7, world attention has essentially focused on two aspects of the war in Gaza. First, the ferocity of the IDF operations that have caused immense loss of civilian life and devastation, … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Where to Turkish-Israeli Relations?

August 5, 2023 In 1492, the Ottoman Empire, the predecessor of Atatürk’s modern Türkiye, opened its doors to Jews after they had been expelled from Spain. Türkiye became the first Muslim-majority country to recognize Israel as an independent state in … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Prime Minister Netanyahu Visits a Turbulent US

July 28, 2024 Last Wednesday, Prime Minister Netanyahu addressed the US Congress for the fourth time, the most of any foreign leader in history. Winston Churchill had addressed Congress only three times. Mr. Netanyahu’s previous address to Congress was in … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Gaza Becoming Inhabitable Land

July 22, 2024 During the past weeks, developments of global public interest somehow diverted attention away from the war in Gaza until the Israeli strikes on Al-Mawasi, an area in southern Gaza where tens of thousands of Palestinians had fled … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

NATO’s Washington Summit

July 15, 2024 In a post two weeks ago, I said that an assessment of NATO’s past 75 years must have two principal chapters: One on NATO’s performance in providing security for the territory of its members, under Article 5 … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Türkiye’s Overlooked Gift to Israel

July 8, 2024 President Bashar al-Assad met with Alexander Lavrentiev, President Putin’s special envoy in late June. During their discussion, President al-Assad reportedly expressed Syria’s openness to all initiatives aimed at improving Syrian-Turkish relations, provided Ankara respects Syria’s sovereignty and … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

NATO’s 75th Anniversary

July 3, 2024 As the NATO Heads of State meetings start in Washington next week, many will look at the past and evaluate the Alliance’s performance in the past 75 years. In my view, such an assessment must have two … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Lessening the Intensity of the War in Gaza

July 1, 2024 In recent posts, I said that Prime Minister Netanyahu could be thinking of continuing the war in Gaza in different ways depending on the battlefield requirements, lowering the loss of life among Gazans, keeping the talks over … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Summit on Peace in Ukraine  

June 18, 2024 The Summit, organized by Switzerland, took place at Bürgenstock on June 15-16, 2024. The task of the meeting was to develop a common understanding of a path towards a just and lasting peace in Ukraine. In the … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment