What OIG Inspected 

OIG inspected the executive direction, policy and program implementation, resource management, and information management operations of Embassy Ankara. The inspection included Consulate General Istanbul, Consulate Adana, Consular Agency Izmir, and Branch Office Gaziantep.

What OIG Found 

• The Chargé d’Affaires and acting Deputy Chief of Mission led Mission Türkiye in a professional and collaborative manner. They had good coordination and cooperation with the leadership at Consulate General Istanbul and Consulate Adana. 

• The mission played a key role in facilitating approval by Türkiye for the accession of Finland and Sweden to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. 

• The mission provided essential support to regional crises such as assisting Syrian refugees, assisting U.S. citizens, and responding to a devastating earthquake in Türkiye. 

• Mission Türkiye’s consular operations were generally well led and coordinated; however, crisis management and workload growth strained limited managerial capacity. 

• The mission had internal control deficiencies related to property management, contract administration, and procurement. 

• The mission’s local compensation plan and human resources policies required updates, and the mission was missing required facility and residential safety inspections. 

• Spotlight on Success: Consular staff developed an automated electronic screening tool to evaluate visa applicants for affiliation with sanctioned entities. This innovation subsequently was adopted by other missions. 

What OIG Recommends 

OIG made 27 recommendations to Embassy Ankara. In its comments on the draft report, the embassy concurred with all 27 recommendations. OIG considers all 27 recommendations resolved. The embassy’s response to each recommendation and OIG’s reply can be found in the Recommendations section of this report.