Historical Resolution Tracking Feature » Appointment of Representative of the Istanbul Liaison Office

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Appointment of Representative of the Istanbul Liaison Office


Resolution of the ICANN Board
Meeting Date: 
Thu, 13 Aug 2020
Resolution Number: 
2020.08.13.02 – 2020.08.13.05
Resolution Text: 

Whereas, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, a non-profit, public benefit corporation, duly incorporated and existing under the laws of the State of California and the United States of America, having its principal place of business at 12025 Waterfront Drive, Suite 300, Los Angeles, California USA 90094 (ICANN), has established a liaison office in Istanbul, Turkey.

Whereas, by resolution https://www.icann.org/resources/board-material/resolutions-2017-06-24-en..., the ICANN Board appointed Nicholas Victor Tomasso as representative of the Liaison Office, with each and every authority to act on behalf of the Liaison Office.

Whereas, Mr. Tomasso's role as authorized representative of the liaison office in Istanbul, Turkey will end on 31 August 2020.

Resolved (2020.08.13.02), effective 31 August 2020, Nicholas Victor Tomasso is removed from his duties as the authorized representative of ICANN's liaison office in Istanbul, Turkey, for any and all purposes.

Resolved (2020.08.13.03), the Board thanks Mr. Tomasso for his years of service as the representative of the liaison office in Istanbul, Turkey.

Resolved (2020.08.13.04), effective 1 September 2020, Baher Ali Mohamed Abdelraouf Esmat, [PERSONAL CONTACT INFORMATION REDACTED], is appointed as the representative of the liaison office in Istanbul, Turkey, with each and every authority to act individually on behalf of ICANN in connection with the activities of the that office.

Resolved (2020.08.13.05), portions of this action by the Board shall remain confidential as an "action relating to personnel or employment matters", pursuant to Article 3, section 3.5b of the ICANN Bylaws.

Rationale for Resolution: 

ICANN is committed to continuing its global reach and presence in all time zones throughout the globe. One of the early key aspects of ICANN's globalization efforts was to establish offices in Turkey and Singapore.

ICANN formally registered a liaison office in Istanbul, Turkey on 18 June 2013. In order to properly maintain a liaison office in Istanbul, Turkey, the ICANN Board is required to designate a liaison office representative. To that end, the Board initially designated David Olive as the first representative of ICANN's liaison office in Istanbul, Turkey. Mr. Olive was replaced by Nicholas Tomasso in August 2017. Mr. Tomasso is now ready to relinquish his duties to another qualified individual.

As Mr. Tomasso is relinquishing his duties, the Board must designate a new representative. Baher Esmat has agreed to serve as the new designated representative of the liaison office in Istanbul, Turkey.

Mr. Esmat will serve as the third legal representative of the liaison office in Istanbul.

Mr. Tomasso will remain in his role as Vice President, Global Meeting Operations.

The identification and designation of a new representative demonstrates ICANN organization's commitment to globalization and as such, is in the public interest and consistent with ICANN's mission.

There will be a fiscal impact on ICANN in FY21 only to the extent of travel and related costs for Mr. Esmat as he will continue to reside in Egypt for the time being, but ICANN will save on the costs associated with Mr. Tomasso's having resided in Istanbul during his tenure as the representative of the liaison office in Turkey, Istanbul. This resolution should not have any impact on the security, stability and resiliency of the domain name system.

This is an Organizational Administrative Function not requiring public comment.