Turkey appoints first resident ambassador to Iceland

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has appointed Mustafa Levent Bilgen as the country’s new ambassador to Iceland, mbl.is reported, citing the Turkish newspaper Cumhuriyet.

Bilgen will be Turkey’s first ambassador to Iceland to be permanently based in the country. Diplomatic relations between the two countries have previously been managed through Turkey’s embassy in Oslo.

Turkey announced in February that it would open an embassy in Reykjavík. The decision has been described as reflecting the country’s ambition to strengthen its political and economic ties with the Nordic countries and engage with Arctic affairs.

Bilgen joined Turkey’s foreign service in 1995. He studied in the United States, earning a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a master’s degree in international business and communications from George Mason University.

He has held several senior positions, including adviser to Turkey’s National Security Council, consul general in Toronto and New York, and ambassador to the United Arab Emirates. Most recently, he served as Turkey’s ambassador to Ukraine.

Bilgen’s daughter, physician İdil Bilgen, attracted attention in Turkey when she was crowned Miss Turkey in 2024.