Turkey, Developments in the Middle East and Turkish-American Relations" with Namik Tan, Ambassador of Turkey to the U.S.
Luncheon Talk
Ambassador Namık Tan was appointed Ambassador of Turkey to the United States in February 2010. Prior to this appointment, Ambassador Tan was Deputy Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, responsible for bilateral political affairs and public diplomacy.
He was previously Ambassador of Turkey to Israel from 2007 to 2009.
Ambassador Tan joined the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1982. After working in the Department of Maritime Affairs, he was posted to Moscow as Second Secretary from 1984 to 1987. He then spent two years as First Secretary in Abu Dhabi.
After returning to Turkey, Mr. Tan served as the Deputy Chief of Cabinet to the Turkish President until 1991.
He was later assigned to the Turkish Embassy in Washington, where he served as Counselor from 1991 to 1995 and First Counselor from 1997 to 2001. Between these assignments, Mr. Tan served as Chief of Cabinet to the Turkish Foreign Minister.
Upon his return to Turkey in 2001, he first served as Head of the Department for the Americas, and was subsequently named Head of the Information Department in 2002. He went on to serve as the spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 2004 to 2007.
Born in 1956, Ambassador Tan holds a law degree from Ankara University. Ambassador and Mrs. Fügen Tan have two children.
Moderator
Dr. Joshua Walker
WalkerDr. Joshua Walker is a Transatlantic fellow at the German Marshall Fund based in Washington, D.C. He is also a non-resident fellow at the Crown Center for Middle Eastern Studies at Brandeis University and a Truman National Security Fellow. Joshua`s forthcoming book focuses on the role of historical memories in post-imperial successor states, with a particular focus on Japan and Turkey's domestic and foreign policies.
Among his many affiliations, Joshua has most recently been a fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School, Tokyo University, the Council on Foreign Relations, and the Transatlantic Academy and taught at Istanbul Sehir Merkez, Middle East Technical University, George Mason, Princeton, University of Richmond, and Yale. At Princeton University his Ph.D. is in Politics and Public Policy with a specialization on international relations and security studies.
He holds a Master's degree in International Relations from Yale University and a Bachelor's degree from the University of Richmond. He was a Fulbright Fellow in Ankara, Turkey and has worked for the U.S. Embassy and State Department on Turkey and grew up in Sapporo, Japan where he lived for 15 years and his family still resides.
Active in bridging the academic and policy worlds, Joshua co-founded the Yale Journal of International Affairs, Young Professionals in Foreign Policy in New York, and the Project on Religion, Diplomacy, and International Relations at Princeton.
In addition to his numerous articles, briefs, and book projects, he has been published in a variety of outlets including the Boston Globe, Christian Science Monitor, Foreign Policy, International Affairs, International Herald Tribune, New Republic, Washington Quarterly, and Washington Times. Joshua is called upon often to offer commentary in international media outlets.