MFA Press Statement: Presentation of Credentials Ceremony

The following foreign Heads of Mission presented their credentials to President S R Nathan in separate ceremonies at the Istana today:

(a) The Ambassador of the Republic of Hungary,
His Excellency Ferenc Somogyi

(b) The Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey,
His Excellency Safak Gokturk

(c) The Ambassador of the Republic of Peru,
His Excellency Armando Raul Patino Alvistur

(d) The High Commissioner of the Republic of Malta,
His Excellency John M Rizzo Naudi Jr

The curricula vitae of His Excellency Ferenc Somogyi, His Excellency Safak Gokturk, His Excellency Armando Raul Patino Alvistur and His Excellency John M Rizzo Naudi Jr are attached.

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MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
SINGAPORE
28 JANUARY 2010

________________________________________________________________________

FERENC SOMOGYI

AMBASSADOR

REPUBLIC OF HUNGARY

BORN:    1 September 1945, Hartkirchen, Austria

AGE:    64

MARITAL STATUS:    Married to Mrs Andrea Somogyine Bors, has three children

EDUCATION:    Primary School in Budapest, Hungary (1952 - 1960)

Secondary School in Budapest, Hungary (1960-1964)

Faculty of International Relations, University of Economics, Budapest (1964-1968)

"University doctor" degree in world economics, Budapest, Hungary (1978)

College of Political Sciences, Budapest, Hungary (1975-1979)

CAREER:    1968 - 1969 Desk Officer, International Organizations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

1969 - 197l    Attache, Embassy of Hungary in Rangoon, Burma

1971 - 1973 Second Secretary, Embassy of Hungary in Lagos, Nigeria

1973 - 1980 Senior Desk Officer, African Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

1980 - 1984    Deputy Permanent Representative, UN Mission of Hungary, New York

1984 - 1989    Head of Department for International Organizations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

1989 - 1991    State Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

1992 - 1994 Chairman, Board of Directors of Export-Garantry (later Exim Bank)

Director, Branch of the Budapest University for Foreign Trade, operated in co-operation with the University of Humberside, Hull, United Kingdom

1994 - 1996    State Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

1996 - 1998 State Secretary for Euro-Atlantic Integration, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

1998 - 2001 Director for European Integration, MATAV Hungarian Telecommunications Co. in Budapest

2001 - 2004    CEO, Stonebridge communications AD - Skopje (member of the MATAV Hungarian Telecommunications' group)

2004 - 2006 Minister for Foreign Affairs

2006 - 2007    Director for International Affairs, MATAV Hungarian Telecommunications

2007 - 2009 Ambassador to the United States of America, Washington DC

5 November 2009    Ambassador-designate to the Republic of Singapore

28 January 2010    Ambassador to the Republic of Singapore

OTHER APPOINTMENTS:

1989 - 1991

Head of the Hungarian delegation for the negotiations on the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Hungary

1989 - 1992
Member of the Hungarian Olympic Committee

1994    Trustee, Board of Mc. Daniel College, Westminster, MD (USA)

1996 - 1998    Head of the Hungarian delegation at the negotiations on
1)    Basic Treaty between Hungary and Slovakia
2)    Basic Treaty between Hungary and Romania
3)    Hungary's accession to the NATO
4)    Hungary's accession to the European Union

1998 - 2002    Member, International Advisory Board of the Institute for European Studies, Columbia University, New York, NY

1998 - 2003    President, Hungarian Atlantic Council

1999 - 2001    Member of the Board of the American Chamber of Commerce in Hungary

2000 - 2003    Member, Bureau of the Atlantic Treaty Associations

2001 - 2003    Vice Chairman of Bureau of the Atlantic Treaty Associations

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January 2010

________________________________________________________________________

SAFAK GOKTURK

AMBASSADOR

REPUBLIC OF TURKEY

BORN:    28 August 1957, Bonn

AGE:    52

MARITAL STATUS:    Married, has two children

EDUCATION:    University of Ankara, Faculty of Political Science (1979)

CAREER:    1979 - 1981    Attache, Department of East, Directorate General for Bilateral Political Affairs

1981 - 1982    Military service

1982 - 1982    Third Secretary, Directorate General for Eastern Europe and Far East

1982 - 1984    Third Secretary, Second Secretary, Embassy of the Republic of Turkey, Lagos

1984 - 1988    Second Secretary, First Secretary, Permanent Mission of the Republic of Turkey to the United Nations

1988 - 1989    First Secretary, Department of Cyprus

1989 - 1992    First Secretary, Embassy of the Republic of Turkey, Athens

1992 - 1994    First Secretary, Counsellor, Deputy Chief of Mission, Embassy of the Republic of Turkey, Teheran

1994 - 1996    Head of Section, Head of Department, Department for Personnel Affairs

1996 - 1999    Consul General, Consulate General of the Republic of Turkey, Frankfurt

1999 - 2001    Deputy Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission of the Republic of Turkey to the United Nations

2001 - 2002    Head of Department, Department of United Nations

2002 - 2005    Minister-Deputy Director General, Deputy Directorate General for Middle East

2005 - 2009    Ambassador to the Arab Republic of Egypt

1 October 2009    Ambassador-designate to the Republic Singapore

28 January 2010    Ambassador to the Republic of Singapore

.....

January 2010

________________________________________________________________________

ARMANDO RAUL PATINO ALVISTUR

AMBASSADOR

REPUBLIC OF PERU

BORN:    29 September 1950, Lima

AGE:    59

MARITAL STATUS:    Married to Maria Eugenia Galindo Rodriguez, has two children

EDUCATION:    Arts and Humanities, Pontifical Catholic University of Peru (1969- 1971)

Law Studies, Pontifical Catholic University of Peru (1972)

International Relations Studies, Diplomatic Academy of Peru (1973 - 1975)

BA in International Relations, Diplomatic Academy of Peru (1978)

CAREER:    1976    Third Secretary of Chancellery, Department of Third World Countries and Non Aligned Movement, International Organisations Divisions, Under Secretariat for Foreign Policy

Third Secretary of Chancellery, Minister of Foreign Affairs office

1978    Third Secretary, Minister of Foreign Affairs office

Third Secretary, Embassy of Peru in Spain

1981    Second Secretary, Embassy of Peru in Spain

Second Secretary, Embassy of Peru in Australia

1984    First Secretary, Head of the Consular Section of Peru in Canberra, Australia

First Secretary, Direction of Planning

1985    First Secretary, Head of the Department of Economic Policy, Direction of Economic Affairs of the Secretariat for Economic Affairs and Integration

1986    First Secretary, Head of the Department of Industrial and Technological Policy, Direction of International Economic Policy

1987    First Secretary, Minister of Foreign Affairs office

1988    Counsellor, Minister of Foreign Affairs office

Counsellor, Embassy of Peru in Chile

1991    Minister Counsellor, Embassy of Peru in Chile

1993    Minister Counsellor, Director of South America

1994    Director of South America

1995    Minister, Chargé d'Affaires a.i., Embassy of Peru in Ecuador

1996    Minister, Embassy of Peru in Ecuador

1997    Director of Planning and Evaluation of Foreign Programs

1999    Ambassador of Peru to the Czech Republic

2005    Director General for Human Resources Development

2006 Director General for the European Community

Sep 2008 to 2009    Ambassador to the Republic of Cuba

6 November 2009    Ambassador-designate to the Republic of Singapore

28 January 2010    Ambassador to the Republic of Singapore

OTHER APPOINTMENTS:    Assistant Professor, International Relations Theory 101 and 102 at the Diplomatic Academy of Peru (1976)

Assistant Professor, Introduction to International Relations 101 at the Diplomatic Academy of Peru (1985)

Represented Peru in consultation, coordination, and bilateral cooperation mechanisms with South American countries (1993 - 1994). Also served as Secretary of the Foreign Affairs Advisory Commission in 1997

Advisor for the Peruvian delegation in the negotiations to conclude the demarcation of the Peruvian-Ecuadorian border (1997 - 1998) and Member of the Peruvian-Ecuadorian Commission on Measures of Mutual Confidence and Security, established in the Brasilia Declaration of November 1997

Appointed Executive Secretary for Thematic Issues in the Fifth Latin America and Caribbean-European Union Summit (May 2008)

AWARDS/ DECORATION:    Received decorations in Spain, Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia and Paraguay

Peru's Grand Cross of the Order of Merit for Distinguished Services

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January 2010

________________________________________________________________________

JOHN M RIZZO NAUDI JR

HIGH COMMISSIONER

REPUBLIC OF MALTA

BORN:    8 October 1954, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

AGE:    54

MARITAL STATUS:    Married to Helga nee' Mifsud Bonnici, has three children

EDUCATION:    Primary education at Stella Mares School, Balzan

Secondary education at St. Aloysius college, B'Kara

B.Sc (Hons) Civil and Structural Engineering, The City University , London, UK (1977 - 1981)

Satisfied Board of Examiners in Architectural Studies to be granted a warrant to practice as an Architect and Civil Engineer (A. & C.E.), University of Malta (1992 - 1994)

CAREER:    1981 - 1982    Junior Consulting Engineer, CH Dobbie and Partners (UK) (An engineering consultancy firm)

1982 - 1983    Acting Site Agent, Baldwin international Overseas Contractors, Libya

1983 - 1986    Architectural, Civil and Structural Engineering Design Consultant, MalConsult/MALIB (a building maintenance company)

1986 - 1994    Responsible for Site supervision and Project Management of Housing and Warehousing/Industrial Building Projects, Camarco International Limited

1989    Sub-Contracted by Perit C.L. Spiteri & Partners to prepare Pre-Tender Structural Designs and Drawings for the New Airport Terminal in Lupa

1994 - 2000    Architectural and Civil Engineering Consultant (Private practice), locally and overseas in Persian Gulf States and Libya

Mar 2001 - Feb 2003    Project Manager to Cost Controller, Mater Dei New Hospital project, Tal-Qroqq, Malta

Feb 2003 -Oct 2003    Consultant to Cost Controller, Mater Dei New Hospital project, Tal-Qroqq, Malta

Oct 2003 - Dec 2006    Architect and Civil Engineering, Structural Design Consultant (Private practice), Mekanika Limited

Cost Consultant, HSBC Bank PLC

Jan 2005 - to-date    Member of the Board of Directors,
Kordin Grain Terminal Company

Member of HSBC Bank (Malta) PLC, Panel of Architects

4 August 2009    High Commissioner-designate to the Republic of Singapore

28 January 2010    High Commissioner to the Republic of Singapore

HOBBIES:    Golf, fishing and reading

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January 2010

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