{{Short description|Israeli diplomat}} {{Infobox officeholder | image = ArthurLenk2013.jpg | name = Arthur Lenk | caption = | office = 3rd [[List of ambassadors of Israel to South Africa|Israeli Ambassador to South Africa]] | president = [[Shimon Peres]]<br>[[Reuven Rivlin]] | term_start = October 16, 2013 | term_end = June 2017 | predecessor = [[Dov Segev-Steinberg]] | successor = [[Lior Keinan]] | constituency = | majority = | office2 = 4th [[List of ambassadors of Israel to Azerbaijan|Israeli Ambassador to Azerbaijan]] | president2 = [[Moshe Katsav]]<br>[[Dalia Itzik]] ''(Acting)''<br>[[Shimon Peres]] | term_start2 = September 13, 2005 | term_end2 = June 29, 2009 | predecessor2 = Eitan Naeh | successor2 = Michael Lavon-Lotem | constituency2 = | majority2 = | birth_date = {{birth year and age|1964}} | birth_place = {{Flagicon|USA}} [[Paterson, New Jersey]], U.S. | death_date = | death_place = | party = | relations = | alma_mater = | occupation = | signature = | website = | footnotes = | native_name_lang = he | native_name = ארתור לנק }} '''Arthur Lenk''' ({{langx|he|ארתור לנק}}; born 1964), is an Israeli diplomat who served as Israel's [[List of ambassadors of Israel to South Africa|ambassador to South Africa]], [[Lesotho]] and [[List of ambassadors of Israel to Eswatini|Swaziland]] from August 2013 to July 2017. He served as the fourth [[ambassador]] of the [[Israel|State of Israel]] to the [[Azerbaijan|Republic of Azerbaijan]] from August 2005 to July 2009. He then served as director of the Department of International Law in the Office of the Legal Adviser of [[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Israel)|Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs]].
==Biography== Arthur Lenk was born to a [[American Jews|Jewish-American]] family in [[Paterson, New Jersey]], and attended the [[Frisch School]] in [[Paramus, New Jersey|Paramus]]. He made [[Aliyah]], emigrating to Israel in 1983.
Lenk served as a medic in the [[Israel Defense Forces]] and first aid instructor at the IDF's officer training school between 1984 and 1986. Lenk then studied law at the [[Hebrew University of Jerusalem]], gaining an LL.B. in 1990, and an LL.M. in International Law in 2003. In 1991, he became a member of the [[Israel Bar Association|Israeli Bar]], and was admitted to the New York Bar in 1992. He then began working as a lawyer in [[Jerusalem]]. Between 1992 and 1996, Lenk served as chairman of the Israel Softball Association. He was named to the organization's Hall of Fame in July 2005.<ref name="soft">[http://www.israelsoftball.org/CatPage.asp?iCat=5/ Israel Softball Association website, Hebrew] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202210455/http://www.israelsoftball.org/CatPage.asp?iCat=5%2F |date=February 2, 2014 }}</ref>
Lenk is married to Ruth and they have three daughters: Margalit, Ilana and Aiden.
==Career== Lenk joined the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a foreign service cadet and participated in the Foreign Officer Training Program in 1994. In 1996, he was sent to the Israeli Embassy in [[New Delhi]], [[India]], where he served as Second Secretary for Cultural and Academic Affairs. In 1998, he transferred to the Consulate General of Israel to the Southwestern United States, [[Los Angeles]], where he served as Consul for Communications and Public Affairs until 2000.
Following this post, Lenk worked as an attorney in the Office of the Legal Adviser at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jerusalem. In 2000–01 Lenk took part in Israel's interaction with the Sharm el-Sheikh Fact-Finding Committee ("The Mitchell Committee"), which examined reasons for the start of violence in the region beginning in the autumn of 2000.<ref name="Sharm">[https://2001-2009.state.gov/p/nea/rls/rpt/3060.htm Report of the Sharm el-Sheikh Fact-Finding Committee], 30 April 2001, [[State Department]].</ref> His primary responsibility was giving legal advice on [[United Nations]] related issues. He also acted as Israel's representative to the United Nations General Assembly's Legal Committee in 2001 and 2004. Furthermore, Lenk worked as part of the Israel Government's legal team on Israel's position regarding the [[Israeli West Bank barrier|Israel barrier]] case before the [[International Court of Justice]] in 2003 and 2004.
Lenk was awarded an "outstanding diplomat" citation by Ministry of Foreign Affairs for his role within a group that coordinated Israel's initiative for the January 2005 United Nations Special Session commemorating the Sixtieth Anniversary of the freeing of Europe's Concentration Camps.<ref name="UN">{{cite web |url=https://www.un.org/ga/28special/ |publisher=United Nations General Assembly |title=Commemoration of the Sixtieth Anniversary of the Liberation of the Nazi Concentration Camps |date=24 January 2005 |access-date=30 September 2014}}</ref>
Between 2002 and 2005 Lenk also served as an Israeli Government spokesman and a lecturer on foreign affairs and diplomacy, briefing and appearing on a range of international media sources including [[CNN]], [[BBC]],<ref name="BBC">{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/2062943.stm |title=Arafat denounces Israeli siege |publisher=[[BBC News]] |date=24 June 2002 |access-date=30 September 2014}} See video of interview in Real Media, upper right box: Arthur Lenk, Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman "The way the Palestinians can help their people is to stop the violence."</ref> ''[[Le Monde]]''<ref name="LeM">[http://www.france-mail-forum.de/fmf35/pol/35paris.htm Interview] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050501200119/http://www.france-mail-forum.de/fmf35/pol/35paris.htm |date=May 1, 2005 }}, "Le droit humanitaire est trop politique", ''[[Le Monde]]'', 29 June 2004 {{in lang|fr}}</ref> and [[NPR]]. In the fall semester of 2003, he also taught a graduate seminar in Foreign Policy, International Law and the Arab-Israel Conflict at the Herzog Center for Middle East Studies and Diplomacy, [[Ben Gurion University of the Negev]], in [[Beersheba]].
Lenk was appointed as [[List of Israeli ambassadors to Azerbaijan|Israel's fourth ambassador to Azerbaijan]] by the [[Government of Israel|Israeli Government]] on 3 April 2005.<ref name="PMO">[http://www.pmo.gov.il/PMO/Archive/Decisions/2005/04/des3499.htm Cabinet Communique] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070327232146/http://www.pmo.gov.il/PMO/Archive/Decisions/2005/04/des3499.htm |date=March 27, 2007 }}, Prime Minister's Office, 3 April 2005 {{in lang|he}}</ref> He submitted his credentials to the [[President of Azerbaijan]] [[Ilham Aliyev]] on 13 September 2005.
Lenk's tenure in Azerbaijan has coincided with a significant development of the relations between the two countries. A number of key visits took place highlighted by the historic visit of President [[Shimon Peres]] to [[Baku]] on 28–29 June 2009. Peres led a delegation that included three ministers and a large business delegation. Other visits to Baku were those of Israel's Minister of Agriculture [[Shalom Simhon]] in May 2008, Deputy Prime Minister [[Avigdor Lieberman]] in August 2007 and two visits of the Minister of National Infrastructures [[Binyamin Ben-Eliezer]] in June 2006 and June 2008 and visits of Azerbaijan's Ministers of Economic Development (February 2007), Emergency Situations (March 2007), Transportation (June 2007) and Ecology and Natural Resources (October 2007) to Israel. Additionally, an association of Azerbaijani immigrants to Israel, AZIS, was formed in April 2007, to serve as a bridge between the societies and promote relations. Trade ties also dramatically grew with Israel significantly increasing its energy purchases from Azerbaijan and developing investment and exports in a number of sectors including agriculture, infrastructure and telecommunications. According to figures published by Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics, Israeli exports to Azerbaijan grew by nearly 5000 percent during Lenk's tenure as ambassador.<ref>[http://cbs.gov.il/reader/newhodaot/hodaa_template.html?hodaa=201016010 Israel's foreign trade figures from website of Central Bureau of Statistics]</ref> {| class="wikitable" |- ! Year ! 2005 ! 2006 ! 2007 ! 2008 ! 2009 |- | Israeli Exports | $5.4m | $28.0m | $82.6m | $128.3m | $264.0m |}
Serving as the director of the Department of International Law in the Office of the Legal Adviser of Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Lenk rejoined the Office of the Legal Adviser following the conclusion of his tenure as Israel's ambassador to Azerbaijan in 2009, and worked from 2010 through 2013 as the Ministry's director of the Department of International Law. He was seconded to work during 2010-2011 as a staff member on the UN Secretary-General's Panel of Inquiry on the [[2010 Gaza flotilla raid|Gaza flotilla raid]].
In August 2013, he arrived in [[Pretoria]] to begin serving as Israel's ambassador to [[South Africa]] and non-resident ambassador to [[Lesotho]] and [[Swaziland]]. He submitted his credentials to the [[President of South Africa]] [[Jacob Zuma]] on 16 October 2013. He submitted his credentials to the King of [[Swaziland]] [[Mswati III]] on 27 February 2014. He submitted his credentials to the King of [[Lesotho]] [[Letsie III]] on 2 July 2015. Lenk vocally promoted trade and development opportunities for South Africa with Israel, emphasizing topics like water management, technology and agriculture as areas where Israeli innovation has positively impacted life across Africa. During the [[2014 Israel-Gaza conflict]] Lenk played an active role in representing Israel's position in South African traditional and social media.<ref>[http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2014-07-14-tweeting-for-israelunderfire/#.VM4ABNwUHIV Article on social media interaction in The Daily Maverick]</ref>
In June 2016, Lenk led a special Israel-South African Water Week event bringing top Israeli water management experts to South Africa to share the country's experiences in combating drought. The events, held in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban, brought water experts from the two countries together. In April 2017, Ambassador Lenk led a large Israeli trade delegation to Swaziland, for the first ever bilateral trade seminar between the two countries.
==Publications== * {{cite news |title=11 things I learned in South Africa|url=https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2017-07-03-11-things-i-learned-in-south-africa/#.WY19kdKg_IU |newspaper=The Daily Maverick |location=South Africa |date=3 July 2017}} * {{cite news |title=Israel and Swaziland: Lots of work together to build our human fortress|url=http://www.observer.org.sz/features/86916-israel-and-swaziland-lots-of-work-together-to-build-our-human-fortress.html |newspaper=Swazi Observer |location=Swaziland |date=3 April 2017}} * {{cite news |title=Israel's baseball team is the story of our shared heritage|url=http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israels-baseball-team-is-story-of-our-shared-heritage/ |newspaper=The Times of Israel |location=Israel |date=11 March 2017}} * {{cite news |title=Tweeting for #IsraelUnderFire|url=http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2014-07-14-tweeting-for-israelunderfire/#.VM4ABNwUHIV |newspaper=The Daily Maverick |location=South Africa |date=14 July 2014}} * {{cite news |title=Chances for SA and Israel |url=http://citizen.co.za/35767/lenkopedv/ |newspaper=The Citizen |location=South Africa |date=4 September 2013 |access-date=9 September 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130906082507/http://citizen.co.za/35767/lenkopedv/ |archive-date=6 September 2013 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }} * {{cite news |url=https://www.haaretz.co.il/opinions/1.1268155 |newspaper=[[Haaretz]] |date=28 June 2009 |script-title=he:אזרבייג'אן כמודל |language=he |trans-title=Azerbaijan as a model |access-date=30 September 2014}} ** [https://web.archive.org/web/20110721141306/http://baku.mfa.gov.il/mfm/Data/161038.doc English translation]. ** [https://web.archive.org/web/20110721141315/http://baku.mfa.gov.il/mfm/Data/161039.doc Russian translation] in ''[[Zerkalo Nedeli]]''. ** [https://web.archive.org/web/20110721141325/http://baku.mfa.gov.il/mfm/Data/161037.doc Azerbaijani translation in ''Express'']. * {{cite news|url=http://www.525.az/new/2008/09/26/read=34655 |publisher=525 |date=26 September 2008 |title=Hateful words ... and an opportunity |language=az }}{{dead link|date=January 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} ** ''525'' published a response from the Iranian Embassy on 3 October 2008. * {{cite news|title=Israel at 60: Azerbaijan is a key in our looking forward |url=http://baku.mfa.gov.il/mfm/Data/147391.doc |date=8 May 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721141257/http://baku.mfa.gov.il/mfm/Data/147391.doc |archive-date=July 21, 2011 }} ** appeared in ''Yeni Azerbaijan'' (Azerbaijani). ** appeared in ''Express'' (Azerbaijani). ** appeared in ''Zerkalo'' (Russian). * {{cite news|title=A New Beginning for Peace in the Middle East |url=http://baku.mfa.gov.il/mfm/Data/126696.doc |date=27 November 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071127174129/http://baku.mfa.gov.il/mfm/Data/126696.doc |archive-date=November 27, 2007 }} ** appeared in ''Yeni Azerbaijan'' (Azerbaijani). ** appeared in ''525'' (Azerbaijani). ** appeared in ''Echo'' (Russian). * {{cite news|title=Iran's regional threat |url=http://baku.mfa.gov.il/mfm/Data/117868.doc |date=29 June 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070808152734/http://baku.mfa.gov.il/mfm/Data/117868.doc |archive-date=August 8, 2007 }} ** appeared in ''Yeni Azerbaijan'' (Azerbaijani). *** on 7 July 2007, Majid Feyzullahi, Press Officer of the Iranian Embassy in Baku published a response to this article titled "Who is a regional threat – Iran or the Zionist regime?" ** appeared in ''Ayna'' (Azerbaijani). ** appeared in ''[[Zerkalo Nedeli]]'' (Russian). * {{cite news|title=Iran's extreme leaders reject history |url=http://www.cerclemartinbuber.org/documents/Iranoped181206.doc |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070704045047/http://www.cerclemartinbuber.org/documents/Iranoped181206.doc |archive-date=July 4, 2007 }} ** appeared in ''Echo'' in Russian on 20 or 21 December 2006. ** appeared in ''Ekspress'' in Azerbaijani on 20 or 21 December 2006. *"Hizbullah must be stopped", ''Yeni Azerbaycan'', (Azerbaijani), ''Kaspiy'' (Russian), ''Kaspy'' (Azerbaijani), 25 July 2006 *{{cite news|title=Israel and Azerbaijan: Cooperation serves the interests of our countries |publisher=Kaspiy |url=http://www.kaspiy.az/rubrics.php?code=4834 |date=3 May 2006 |language=ru |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928141058/http://www.kaspiy.az/rubrics.php?code=4834 |archive-date=September 28, 2007 }} ** appeared in ''Ekspress'' (Azerbaijani). * {{cite news |title=The Iranian threat to destroy Israel |publisher=Zerkalo |language=ru |date=1 November 2005}} * {{cite news |title=My tale of two courts |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2004/jul/15/comment |date=15 July 2004}} * {{cite journal |title=Political Misuses of International Law: The Development of the 'Crime' of Population Transfer |journal=Eyes on the ICC |volume=1 |page=71 |year=2004}}. * {{cite news |title=Prime Minister Sharon and the Belgian Tool' of Law |newspaper=[[The Jewish Daily Forward]] |url=http://forward.com/articles/9359/prime-minister-sharon-and-the-belgian-tool-of-law/ |date=28 February 2003}} * {{cite journal |title=Fact-Finding as a Negotiation Tool–The Mitchell Report and the Israel-Palestinian Peace Process |publisher=Loyola Law School of Los Angeles |journal=International and Comparative Law Review |volume=24 |number=3 |date=June 2002 |pages=289–325 |url=http://digitalcommons.lmu.edu/ilr/vol24/iss3/1/}}
==External links== * [http://baku.mfa.gov.il Embassy of Israel, Baku, Azerbaijan] * {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20050217084014/http://www.israel-un.org/committees/sixth/59ga/alenk19oct04.htm Speech at United Nations Sixth Committee on International Terrorism]}}, 19 October 2004 * [https://web.archive.org/web/20070930235913/http://www.irna.ir/en/news/view/menu-236/0612231098190109.htm Response of Embassy of Iran in Azerbaijan] to article written by Lenk about Tehran Holocaust Denial Conference, 23 December 2006. [https://web.archive.org/web/20070704045047/http://www.cerclemartinbuber.org/documents/Iranoped181206.doc Arthur Lenk's original article] is an English translation of the article, "Iran's extreme leaders reject history", published in ''Echo'' and ''Ekspress'' newspapers, 20–21 December 2006. * [https://web.archive.org/web/20070927212247/http://www.middleeastinfo.org/forum/index.php?showtopic=10919 Interview with Azerbaijani ''Trend'' news service], 25 August 2006. [https://web.archive.org/web/20110930021855/http://en.apa.az/news.php?id=88888 Interview with Azerbaijani ''APA'' news service], 18 September 2008; [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0daFUY66zE&gl=GB&hl=en-GB Video interview with Trend Agency], 13 January 2009.
==See also== * [[List of Israeli ambassadors to Azerbaijan]] * [[Ambassadors of Israel]] * [[Israel-Azerbaijan relations]]
==References== {{reflist}}
{{s-start}} {{succession box | before = [[Eitan Naeh]] | title = [[List of Israeli ambassadors|Ambassador of Israel]] to [[Azerbaijan]] | years = 2005 - 2009 | after = [[Michael Lavon - Lotem]]}} {{succession box | before = Dov Segev-Steinberg | title = [[List of Israeli ambassadors|Ambassador of Israel]] to [[South Africa]] | years = 2013 - 2017 | after = [[Lior Keinan]]}} {{s-end}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lenk, Arthur}} [[Category:1964 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Frisch School alumni]] [[Category:Israeli Jews]] [[Category:American emigrants to Israel]] [[Category:Israeli lawyers]] [[Category:American lawyers]] [[Category:Israeli civil servants]] [[Category:Ambassadors of Israel to Azerbaijan]] [[Category:People from Paterson, New Jersey]] [[Category:Ambassadors of Israel to South Africa]] [[Category:Ambassadors of Israel to Lesotho]] [[Category:Ambassadors of Israel to Eswatini]] [[Category:Ambassadors of Israel to Mauritius]]