Great Britain appoints new ambassador to Ukraine

Leigh Turner, Britain’s newly-appointed ambassador to Ukraine, was surprisingly quick to assume his duties. As The Day was told in the British Embassy, Mr. Turner arrived in Kyiv the Friday before last and by Wednesday he had presented his credentials to President Viktor Yushchenko. Her Majesty’s Ambassador to Ukraine told the president that the British government is committed to the closest possible relationship with Ukraine as our country moves towards eventual membership in the EU and NATO. “To be appointed British Ambassador to Ukraine is an exciting and fascinating assignment. Ukraine is a major European country. What happens here is of immense significance for the United Kingdom, for Europe and for the world. I look forward to doing everything in my power to help strengthen the ties between us during my Ambassadorship to Ukraine,” the British Embassy’s press service quotes the new ambassador as saying.

Leigh Turner began his career in the UK civil service in 1979. He worked at the Department of Transport, the Property Services Agency, the Department of Environment, and Her Majesty’s Treasury before joining the Diplomatic Service in 1983.

Leigh Turner’s first overseas posting was at the British Embassy in Vienna in 1984-87. From 1987 to 1991 he worked in London, where he dealt with policy issues, including European Union budget and finance. Following Russian language training, he served as First Secretary Economic at the British Embassy in Moscow in 1992-95.

From 1995 to 1998 Leigh Turner was Deputy, then Head of the Hong Kong Department of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. In 1998-2002 he served as a Counsellor EU/Economic in Bonn and later in Berlin. He then took special unpaid leave in Berlin 2002-06 while his wife, who is also a senior British diplomat, worked in the Embassy in Berlin. During this time he ran the family household, looked after their two children, and wrote novels and film treatments. He was also a journalist for the Financial Times , the Boston Globe and other newspapers.

From 2006 to 2008, before his appointment as Ambassador to Ukraine, Leigh Turner was Director, Overseas Territories, at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London. His responsibilities included the Falkland Islands, Bermuda, St. Helena, and nine other Territories.