InternationalWashington briefing: Leading Turkish think tank opens Washington branch
Published: Saturday December 12, 2009
Washington - The Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA) of Ankara became the first private Turkey-based think tank to open a branch in the United States earlier this year.
SETA served as platform for separate addresses by Turkey's prime minister and foreign minister during their visit to the United States on December 7-8.
Nuh Yilmaz, director of SETA's Washington office, told the Armenian Reporter that opening an office was needed "because everything that happens in Washington affects Turkey."
While SETA is generally supportive of the current Turkish government's agenda, it is funded from nongovernment sources, Mr. Yilmaz said.
Mr. Yilmaz said that his organization sought to encourage Armenian-Turkish dialogue and would seek to avoid becoming part of Turkey's lobbying battles.
SETA is only the latest Turkish investment into the Washington think-tank circuit, having been preceded by government and privately funded programs at Georgetown University, the Brookings Institution, The RUMI Forum, and elsewhere.
