Congressional Leaders Program
Building an informed political leadership within the Euro–Atlantic community requires systematic, long-term strategies on both sides of the Atlantic to increase lawmakers' awareness and understanding of the importance of the U.S.–European alliance. In order to ease current political tensions and decrease potential future ones, the German Marshall Fund works to facilitate open dialogue between the U.S. Congress and the German Bundestag on pressing issues facing the transatlantic relationship. Effective engagement with political leaders in both countries requires interaction with all levels of policymaking- for Congress, in particular, this includes not only senior Members and Senators, but also congressional staff and junior Members who will assume leadership roles in the future.
As the European Union expands and deepens its impact as the governing body of a united continent, Brussels increasingly assumes an important role in European foreign and security policy. With its Transatlantic Center in the heart of the EU, GMF is committed to expanding its Congressional Leaders program to actively engage and cultivate relations with the European Parliament, the Council of the EU, and the European Commission.
Among GMF's major Congressional Leaders activities are:
Congress-Bundestag Forum
For four days, German and American lawmakers gathered in San Diego, California, to participate in the third annual Congress–Bundestag Forum, where they renewed and deepened contacts with each other and shared knowledge about political processes on both sides of the Atlantic.
APSA Congressional Fellowship Program
Each year, the German Marshall Fund provides support for two mid-career German professionals to participate in the prestigious ten-month American Political Science Association (APSA) Congressional Fellowship.
Congressional Study Group on Turkey
The United States Association of Former Members of Congress, with support from the German Marshall Fund, has established a Congressional Study Group on Turkey policymakers from both countries to learn about U.S.–Turkish relations first-hand.
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