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[[File:Jiří Šitler.jpg|PhDr. Jiří Šitler Czech diplomat, Ambassador of the Czech Republic in Stockholm

= Jiří Šitler (born 22 December 1964, Hradec Králové) is a Czech diplomat, Ambassador of the Czech Republic in Stockholm, starting with Feb 5th 2016. Before that, he was designated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic as Special Envoy for Holocaust era issues and combat of Antisemitism, between March 2015- January 2016. = J. Šitler has been Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Romania ( November 2010- December 2015) and to the Kingdom of Thailand, the Kingdom of Cambodia, the Lao PDR and the Union of Myanmar/Burma (May 2001- December 2006).

He is also the author or co-author of numerous essay, articles and books, especially on Czech-German relations, legal history of property confiscation and restitutions in connection with EU enlargement, Czech political history and South-East Asia history.

Education
Šitler attended Faculty of Philosophy, Charles University in Prague, where he graduated from in history, May 1988. In April 1990 he obtained PhDr. degree in history, also at Charles University in Prague.

He also had several research stays and lectures in Germany (1992, 1993, 1998); Italy, State Archives Venice and University of Perugia (1990, 1991, 1992); USA, German Marshall Fellowship, Woodrow Wilson Foundation Program (1995, 1996); United Kingdom, Chevening Scholarship, Thai studies at the School of African and Oriental Studies in London (1997); lectures and seminars on Czech foreign policy at Charles University, Prague (1996-2001).

Early career
After graduating from Charles University, J. Šitler started his professional career at the Central Archives of the Academy of Sciences ( Sept. 1988-Jan.1992). The first year he also occupied the post of military interpreter, in the Department of the External Relations of the Ministry of Defence in Prague, as part of the compulsory military service ( Oct. 1988- Sept. 1989).

Soon after the four years spent at the Academy of Sciences, he went on to work in the Office of the President of the Republic, Václav Havel, in the Press Department (March 1993 – January 1995).

For the next two years (February 1995 – June 1997), Šitler was Advisor for President Václav Havel’s speeches, in the Foreign Policy Department.

Diplomatic career
Šitler started the career in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic in July 1997, as Deputy Director of the 1st Territorial Department. In September 1998 he was appointed Director of the Central Europe Department, position which he occupied until September 2000, when he was designated Ambassador at Large (special envoy on World War II related issues). From this position, Šitler has conducted the negociations with Germany, Austria and the US on the compensation of forced labour and other Nazi wrongs. He was the chief negotiator of the Czech Government and representative in the International Commission on Holocaust Era Insurance Claims (ICHEIC)http://www.icheic.org/. During that period Šitler was also chairman of the Working Group for the Summarization of Property Wrongs within the Mixed Commission Dealing with the Mitigation of Certain Property Wrongs suffered by Holocaust Victims (presided by the Deputy Prime Minister Pavel_Rychetský, ).

He was later on appointed Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Czech Republic to the Kingdom of Thailand, the Kingdom of Cambodia, the Lao PDR and the Union of Myanmar/Burma. Šitler' s mission began in May 2001 and ended in December 2006.

He returned to the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Prague, as Director of Diplomatic Protocol (December 2006 – November 2007), followed by the position of Director of the Asia and Pacific Department (April 2008 – October 2010). In between, Šitler represented Czech Republic as special envoy on Myanmar/Burma (December 2007 – March 2008).

Between November 2010 and January 2015, he was Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Bucharest, Romania.

Awards and medals

 * Medal of the Czech Union of Freedom Fighters (1999)


 * Commemorative Medal of the Union of Forced Labourers for 2004 (June 2005)


 * Red Cross Medal of Appreciation 2nd Class (HM Queen of Thailand, October 2005)


 * Honorary Plaque of the Czech Council of Nazi Victims (June 2006)


 * Knight Grand Cross of the Most Exalted Order of the White Elephant (HM King of Thailand, November 2006)


 * Cross of the the Romanian Royal House (May 2012) http://www.mzv.cz/bucharest/en/events/czech_ambassador_receives_cross_of_the.html


 * Honorary Member of the Association of the War Veterans of Romania (January 2015)