Profile:
Pakistan and Türkiye share a close and cooperative relationship, and since their independence, they have supported each other across various fields.
Currently, Türkiye ’s ambassador in Pakistan is Irfan Neziroğlu. He took the position on October 21, 2024.
He was born in Akçaabat, Trabzon, Türkiye, on January 20, 1966.
As for his educational background, he completed his bachelor’s in International Relations from METU University in 1991.
At the same university, he completed his master’s at the Institute of Social Sciences in 1995.
Later on, after seven years, he completed his Doctorate at Selçuk University in the Institute of Social Sciences.
Irfan speaks Turkish and also has a command of English as well as Arabic.
PREVIOUS ASSIGNMENTS:
He began his career in 1992 at the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye (GNAT) library. He worked as an Assistant Expert in the documentation and translation directorate.
After six years at, the GNAT, he then worked as an expert in the directorate of acts and resolutions. In 2000, he also served for fifteen days in the military.
From 2000 to 2010, he was a Deputy Director at the GNAT, working in the Directorate of Acts and Resolutions.
After that, he was promoted to Secretary General at the GNAT, where he served in this role for six years.
Worked as Ambassador:
He first served as an ambassador in 2017, holding this position in Sudan for almost five years.
During his tenure as ambassador in Khartoum, both states strengthened their relations more than in previous years. Türkiye’s total trade investment reached $600 million during this period.
In the following two years, he worked at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Türkiye as the Deputy Minister’s Office Director and Director General of Administrative and Financial Affairs.
Just recently, he was appointed ambassador to Pakistan on October 21, 2024. This appointment followed Dr. Mehmet Pacaci’s designation as Special Representative of the OIC.
This Thursday, the ambassador met with the Prime Minister of Pakistan to discuss bilateral issues and the Middle East conflict.
Pakistan-Türkiye Relations
Türkiye ‘s relations with Pakistan have always developed brotherly since the creation of Pakistan as an independent state.
Most importantly, both states collaborate and cooperate in every sector, from diplomatic to military and from economic to cultural.
In recent years, the relationship between Türkiye and Pakistan, two developing market economies, has evolved into an economic alliance.
The goal of Pakistan and Türkiye is to increase their yearly trade volumes to $5 billion.
As part of this cooperation, curriculums for cultural exchange were developed as a follow-up to the 1953 Agreement for Cultural Cooperation.
The Armed Forces Training Exchange Program, which was started in 2000, is a prime example of military-to-military cooperation.
Pakistani military officers have received training in Türkiye since the program’s inception.
Türkiye also contributes to the maintenance of Pakistan’s F-16 fleet.
READ MORE: PM, Turkish Ambassador Discuss Strengthening Ties
Furthermore, Türkiye and Pakistan have numerous cultural similarities because both countries comprise Muslims as a majority of their population.
In addition, cultural exchange programs, scholarships, and student exchange have even enhanced people-to-people relationships.
