Egemen Bağiş was first elected to Parliament in 2002 as a deputy of Istanbul. He was appointed as Minister for EU Affairs on January 2009 and has been working for full membership negotiations of Turkey since then.
He directed and coordinated the party’s national and international network and local branches on foreign policy matters. He also coordinated the flow of key global developments to the party leadership.
Egemen Bağiş’s current titles include Minister for EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator and Member of the Parliament, representing Istanbul.
Between the years 2002 and 2009, Mr. Bağiş served as party’s contact person for international relations and diplomacy, serving as:
AK Party: Vice Chairman in charge of Foreign Affairs and Representative Offices, Member of the Central Executive Committee, Member of the Central Decision Making and Administrative Committee
Foreign Policy Advisor to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan
Chairman, Turkey-USA Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Caucus
Chairman, NATO-PA Subcommittee on Transatlantic Relations
Deputy Chairman, Turkish Delegation to NATO Parliamentary Assembly.
He was the founding Chairman of the Advisory Board for “Istanbul 2010 Project,” under which, Istanbul was chosen as a European Capital of Culture for the year 2010. A patron of the arts, he is a founding board member the Istanbul Museum of Modern Art and the Santral Museum of Art & Industry. In June 2006 he was awarded the Italian Cavaliere State Recognition.
In the 1990s, he was the President of the Federation of Turkish American Associations in New York, as well as the Advisory Board member of Turkish Citizens Abroad.
He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Human Resources Management and a a Master of Public Administration degree, both from the Baruch College of The City University of New York.
Born in Bingol, Turkey, in 1970, his family originates from the neighboring Siirt province, where his late father, Abdullah Bağiş, was mayor from 1974 through 1979. He is married to Beyhan Bağiş; they have two children.
