New US Consul General in Istanbul begins his duties

Michael Lally, who was appointed as the US Consul General in Istanbul, previously held significant positions at the US Department of Commerce. While serving as the Minister Counselor for Commercial Affairs for Turkey and the Eurasia region at the US Embassy in Turkey, Lally also worked as the Director for International Economics at the White House National Security Council.

Having held key positions in his career such as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) at the Department of Commerce, Lally also served as the Minister Counselor for Commercial Affairs at the US Mission to the European Union in Brussels. There, he managed a business development team of 200 people operating in 24 countries.

Lally, who began his diplomatic career in Kyiv, Ukraine, also served in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Mexico, and the Russian Federation. With experience in the energy sector, Lally worked as Vice President of Business Development at AES and as an Energy Analyst at Science Applications International Corporation.

Lally completed his education with a master's degree at Indiana University and graduated with honors from American University. Additionally, he received training on trade policy and international security at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton Management Program and Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. He also studied international credit and trade finance at the Thunderbird School of Global Management.

Fluent in Turkish, Russian, Spanish, and French, Lally is married and a father of one daughter.

With Lally's assumption of office, a video message was published on the consulate's social media accounts, in which he shared his thoughts regarding his new role.