UN chief appoints Turkey’s Sinirlioglu as special coordinator on Afghanistan

The UN Secretary General Antonio Guiterres has appointed former Turkish Ambassador Feridun Sinirlioglu as his special coordinator to provide an independent assessment of how to deal with the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) in Afghanistan.

The Security Council asked Antonio Guterres in March to conduct and provide forward-looking recommendations for an integrated and coherent approach among relevant political, humanitarian, and development actors to address the current challenges facing Afghanistan.

“Sinirlioglu brings over four decades of experience in international affairs and diplomacy,” the UN said in a statement.

“Throughout his career, he has held portfolios spanning political, humanitarian, development, and human rights issues, has led mediation efforts and has expertise in extensive geographical areas such as the Middle East and North Africa, Europe, North America and Asia, including Afghanistan.”

Meanwhile, the Turkish Foreign Ministry welcomed the appointment of Sinirlioglu as Turkey places importance on the engagement of the international community to solve the issues in Afghanistan, Anadolu reported.

“Türkiye, which has historical and cultural ties with Afghanistan, will continue to support the work on Afghanistan within the scope of the UN, and there is no doubt that special coordinator Ambassador Sinirlioglu will make a significant contribution to these efforts,” the ministry said in a statement.

Sinirlioglu previously served as Turkey’s foreign minister in the interim government of 2015 and as Ankara’s UN envoy in 2016-2023.