Seoul Times Article: Israeli Envoy to Leave Seoul After Four Years of Ambassadorial Duty in S. Korea
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Israeli Envoy to Leave Seoul After Four Years of Ambassadorial Duty in S. Korea
Tuvia Israeli Loved by Both Locals and Foreigners
By Megan Fox
Staff Writer
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| Israeli Ambassador Tuvia Israeli (2nd from right) poses for The Seoul Times with Honorary Consul of Israel Bae Jung-Hwa (to his left), Director Kim Hee-Woo (left) of Israel Culture Center at the farewell ceremony held at the center in Seoul’s Seocho-dong on July 9, 2013. At right is Dr. Alba Florio Legnani, ambassador of Uruguay. |
A special farewell ceremony was held for the outgoing Israeli Ambassador Tuvia Israeli at the Israel Culture Center in Seocho-dong, in Seoul’s Gangnam area, on July 9, 2013.
The farewell event was co-organized by Director Kim Hee-Woo of Israel Culture Center and Honorary Consul of Israel Bae Jung-Hwa, who gave a welcoming speech..
Ambassador Israeli is expected to go back to the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs on August 6, 2013 after successfully rounding out some four years of his duty here in Seoul.
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| Israeli Ambassador to South Korea Tuvia Israeli |
A number of both local and international guest,s including top foreign diplomats, local politicians and media personalities were in attendance, making it clear that the Israeli envoy’s impact on the Seoul diplomatic community has been very strong.
Friends and colleagues gave their remarks during the event.
A photo montage of Mr.Israeli’s time in South Korea followed.
A devoted fan of the local Korean culture and scenery, the Israeli envoy has visited numerous sites in South Korea since he arrived in the nation four years ago. The images showed Ambassador Israeli throughout Korea at many important events and landmarks.
He is one of the most active members of the “Korean Tourism Supporters,” formed by the Korean Tourism Organization (KTO).
Spotlighting the event was a special musical performance by Ms. Susie Koh. Susie is a talented violinist who was born in South Korea and began to study violin, in 1998, while living in Jerusalem. She is currently studying at the Julliard School of Music. Susie played three pieces, dedicating the last to the ambassador.
One of Ambassador Israeli’s numerous achievements, as the Israeli envoy, was setting up a Holocaust memorial museum called “House of Israel,” the first of its kind in the Asian region, according to the Israeli Embassy in Seoul. It was opened in March of 2013.
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| Israeli Ambassador Tuvia Israeli (left) poses for The Seoul Times with Uzbekistani Ambassador Vitali V. Fen, dean of Diplomatic Corps in Seoul at the farewell ceremony held at the Israeli Cunture Center in Seoul’s Seocho-dong on July 9, 2013. |
At a recent interview,with a local daily, the envoy said that he lost both of his grandparents in the Holocaust. He took up his last name “Israeli” when he moved to Israel from Romania.
Mr. Tuvia Israeli was born in Romania. At the age of seven he followed his parents to Israel.
He majored in political science and international relations at the Hebrew University.
He entered the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1978. He started his ambassadorial duty in Seoul on August 5, 2009. Seoul was his first diplomatic post in the East Asian region.
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| Israeli Ambassador Tuvia Israeli (center) poses for The Seoul Times with Ms. Susie Koh, violinist of the Julliard School of Music at the farewell ceremony held at the Israeli Cunture Center in Seoul’s Seocho-dong on July 9, 2013. At right is Ms. Megan Fox, staff writer of The Seoul Times. |
Mr. Israeli served as a diplomat in such foreign countries as Egypt, Paraguay, Sweden, Switzerland, and Jordan before he came to South Korea.
He is married to an English teacher and they have a daughter. His wife and teen-age daughter have remained in Israel during Mr.Israeli’s time in Seoul. They eagerly await his return to their home country.
