Türkiye delays appointing an envoy to the US capital

Türkiye’s Ambassador to Washington, Murat Mercan, announced this week with a message posted on social media that his stint will end due to his retirement age and that he will leave the capital on January 12.

As of January 13, Türkiye will be represented at a charge d’affaires in Washington and Türkiye will have no envoy in the US capital at a time when the two countries’ relations suffer from one of its worst periods.

While President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was busy determining the mayoral candidates for the upcoming local elections, undecidedness appears to be the main reason for leaving a crucial post empty.

Who will be the next envoy for the capital?

Ambassador Burak Akçapar, who currently serves in Ankara as deputy foreign minister, is said to be the strongest candidate for Washington. Yet, had there been a consensus over his name, US officials would have been informed until now, as Mercan’s retirement age was approaching.

Akçapar could be appointed as the envoy to the UN in New York, while Sedat Önal, who is currency fulfilling this job, could be transferred to Washington, according to rumours in the diplomatic corridors.

Mercan, a founding member of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), started to serve in Washington in March 2021. Previously, he served as ambassador to Tokyo. Mercan, who also worked as deputy energy minister before he became ambassador, is one of the first political appointees of the AKP, as the number of political appointees has seen an exponential increase during the party’s two decades of rule.

Ankara could opt to continue with another political appointee, as Egemen Bağış, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s former translator who is currently an ambassador to Prag, is said to be among the possible candidates. Retired ambassador Volkan Bozkır, who joined the ranks of the AKP and served most recently as the president of the UN General Assembly, is another potential name eyeing the job. At 73, his age could be a disadvantage.

No proper farewell organisation for Mercan

Türkiye’s former envoy to the UN, Feridun Sinirlioğlu, had seen his stint prolonged despite reaching retirement age, thanks to a special presidential decree.

Mercan, whose expectation of the prolongation of his stint is not met, is in a hastened exit, as no time is left for proper farewell organisations.

The decision to send a political appointee did not help alleviate problems between the two countries. In a show of the US’ disenchantment with the state of affairs between the two capitals, Mercan often failed to secure high-level appointments, be they in the State Department or other departments.

US support for the YPG, which is seen as the PKK’s wing in Syria, continues to poison relations, while Washington is increasingly unhappy with Türkiye’s blooming trade relations with Russia, which is under Western sanctions. Delaying Sweden’s entry to NATO as Ankara drags its feet to pass the accession protocol from the Turkish parliament has become the top headache in the already strained relations.,

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan over the weekend to also discuss the war in Gazza. Erdogan, who is said to refuse to see Blinken on his first visit to Türkiye after the start of the war in Gazza, met Blinken this time.