Global Conversations MINNEAPOLIS: Turkey – A Partner in Crisis

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Of all NATO allies, Turkey represents the most daunting challenge for the Trump administration. In the wake of a failed military coup in July 2016, the autocratic trend in Ankara took a turn for the worse. One year on, an overwhelming majority of the population considers the United States to be their country’s greatest security threat. In this age of a worsening “clash of civilizations” between Islam and the West, even more important than its place on the map is what Turkey symbolically represents as the most institutionally Westernized Muslim country in the world.

Join us for a thought-provoking conversation with former Ambassador to Turkey Ross Wilson as he discusses the current situation in Turkey and its impact on foreign policy.

About the Speaker

Ambassador Ross Wilson is a distinguished fellow at the Atlantic Council, visiting lecturer in international affairs at the George Washington University, and Global Minnesota board member. Over the course of a 30-year career in the U.S. Foreign Service, he served as American ambassador to Turkey and Azerbaijan and held assignments at the U.S. Embassies in Moscow and Prague and at the U.S. Consulate General in Melbourne, Australia. In Washington, Ambassador Wilson held several positions including chief U.S. negotiator for the Free Trade Area of the Americas. In 2010-2014, Ambassador Wilson served as director of the Atlantic Council’s Dinu Patriciu Eurasia Center, where he led the Council’s work on the former Soviet states, Turkey, and regional energy and economic issues and organized the Council’s annual Energy and Economic Summit in Istanbul. Ambassador Wilson received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota and master’s degrees from Columbia University and the U.S. National War College.  He is a recipient of the president’s Meritorious Service Award, as well as numerous Department of State awards and honors.

Global Conversations in Minneapolis is produced in partnership with the Friends of the Minneapolis Central Library.