Society, Politics, and Economy in Modern Turkey: Sociology of Turkey - Maintained by Tugrul Keskin
We are at a point in our work when we can no longer ignore empires and the imperial context in our studies. (p. 5)
― Edward W. Said, Culture and Imperialism

Saturday, August 22, 2015

The Importance of Being There: A First-Hand Look at the Many Faces of the Pro-Turkey Lobby in DC

BY SHAUNT TCHAKMAK

York University, Class of 2015
ANCA Leo Sarkisian Intern 2015

A majority of the work the Armenian community does to advance the cause happens in our own home towns–the meetings with officials, the events that we host, the letters that we write. And then, there are the times that you have to be in the room where the ideas are being shaped and recommendations are being made – on Artsakh, Armenia, the Armenian Genocide and the whole host of community concerns.
The ANCA Leo Sarkisian team learned the importance of our presence in Washington first hand at a “think tank” event we participated in just a few weeks ago.  Let me set the stage.
On Wednesday, July 15th, the Brookings Institution, a nonprofit public policy think tank based in Washington, DC, hosted an event titled “Considerations and Constraints for U.S., EU, and Turkish Engagement in the South Caucasus”.  The event consisted of a panel of discussants to examine and review one of their own recent publications,  “Retracing the Caucasian Circle” as a part of the organization’s Turkey Project Policy Paper Series. The program, which began in 2004, is prepared with the generous support of the Turkish Industry and Business Association (TUSIAD), with Kemal Kirisci serving as the director of the Center on the United States and Europe’s Turkey Project and specifically as the TUSIAD Senior Fellow – but more about that later.  Panelists included Director of the Brookings Institution Center on the United States and Europe, Fiona Hill, who is a co-author of the report; US State Department Deputy Assistant Secretary, European and Eurasian Affairs Eric Rubin; Former Turkish Ambassador, Ünal Çeviköz; head of the Political, Security, and Development Section delegation of European Union to the U.S, Klaus Botzet; and, report co-author Dr. Kirisci as moderator.

READ MORE....

No comments:

Post a Comment