Coşkun Kırca


Coşkun Kırca was a Turkish diplomat, journalist and politician. He served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey in 1995. He was at first a member of the Republican People's Party, then of the Republican Reliance Party, then of the True Path Party.

Biography

He was born in Istanbul, Turkey in 1927. He attended the Galatasaray High School in Istanbul and graduated from the School of Law at Istanbul University.
On 12 March 1985 the Turkish embassy in Ottawa, where Kirca served as Ambassador, was attacked by Armenian Revolutionary Army militants. Kirca escaped by leaping from the second floor window at the back of the embassy, breaking his right arm, right leg and pelvis. After the attack, he remained in Canada as ambassador for several years before returning to Turkey, where he served in many high-level state posts, including foreign minister.
Kirca died of a heart attack in Istanbul at the age of 77. He was buried at the Feriköy Cemetery, Istanbul the next day, almost exactly 20 years after his brush with death in Ottawa. He was married and had 3 children. He was one of the founders of Galatasaray University.