Michael
Werz

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Michael Werz

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Michael Werz is a senior fellow at American Progress and a senior adviser for North America and multilateral affairs to the Munich Security Conference. His work is focused on the nexus of climate change, migration, and security and emerging countries, especially Turkey, Mexico, and Brazil.

Previously, he was a senior transatlantic fellow at the German Marshall Fund working on transatlantic foreign policy and the European Union. He has held appointments as a public policy scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C., and as a John F. Kennedy Memorial Fellow at Harvard’s Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies.

Werz has published numerous articles and several books dealing with a wide range of scholarly and policy issues, including race and ethnicity in the 20th century; Western social and intellectual history; minorities in Europe and the United States; ethnic conflicts, politics in Europe, and anti-Americanism. He is a graduate of Frankfurt University’s Institute for Philosophy, a former professor at Hannover University in Germany, and a former and adjunct professor at Georgetown University’s BMW Center for German and European Studies.

Latest

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The Turkish Diaspora in Europe Report
Members of the Turkish community stand in front of the Oberlandesgericht courthouse with a large Turkish flag, 2018, in Munich. (Getty/Andreas Gebert)

The Turkish Diaspora in Europe

Polling shows that members of Europe’s Turkish and Turkish-Kurdish diaspora value their separate identity; nevertheless, they welcome the opportunities and freedom of life in Europe, even in the face of lingering discrimination.

Max Hoffman, Alan Makovsky, Michael Werz

The Effects of a Suspension of Turkey’s EU Accession Process In the News

The Effects of a Suspension of Turkey’s EU Accession Process

In this study, Max Hoffman and Michael Werz discuss the state of Turkey's accession to the European Union, as well as effects of the process's possible, though unlikely, suspension.

Stiftung Mercator

Max Hoffman, Michael Werz

Turkey 2023: Four Profiles of Modern Turkey Video

Turkey 2023: Four Profiles of Modern Turkey

This minidocumentary explores the challenges and opportunities that Turkey faces ahead of the 100th anniversary of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's founding of the modern republic.

Andrew Satter, Michael Werz, Max Hoffman

Food Security and Climate Change: New Frontiers in International Security Report
Wheat stands ready for harvest in a field near Anthony, Kansas, June 21, 2015. (AP/Orlin Wagner)

Food Security and Climate Change: New Frontiers in International Security

Food security and climate change are already contributing to human suffering and eroding state structures. The United States should incorporate food and climate analysis fully into foreign and security policy to anticipate the next crisis.

Tom Daschle, Michael Werz

Erdogan’s Tightrope Walk: How Turkey’s Reform Project Ended in Isolation In the News

Erdogan’s Tightrope Walk: How Turkey’s Reform Project Ended in Isolation

Michael Werz argues that innovative forms of trans-Atlantic cooperation are needed, including recognition by Europe and the United States that Turkey, the Middle East, and North Africa share important political and economic ties.

Der Spiegel

Michael Werz

Turkey’s Right Rises Again Article
Supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the AKP celebrate the election outcome in Istanbul on November 1, 2015. (AP/Hussein Malla)

Turkey’s Right Rises Again

President Erdoğan has won a major electoral victory. Now, he must decide whether to continue his strategy of confrontation or move to ease tensions in a polarized country.

Max Hoffman, Michael Werz

Previewing Turkey’s General Election Report
People carry a huge Turkish flag during a local municipality event in Istanbul on May 16, 2015. (AP/Lefteris Pitarakis)

Previewing Turkey’s General Election

Turkey heads to the polls on June 7 for its closest general election in years, with profound implications for this key U.S. ally.

Michael Werz, Max Hoffman, Mark Bhaskar

The U.S.-Turkey Partnership Report
People chant slogans as they try to reach Gezi Park in Istanbul, Turkey, in July 2013. (AP/Vadim Ghirda)

The U.S.-Turkey Partnership

President Erdoğan and his Justice and Development Party are jeopardizing Turkey’s relationship with the United States and the West.

Michael Werz, Max Hoffman

Is America losing Germany? In the News

Is America losing Germany?

Michael Werz discusses the rocky relationship between the United States and Germany.

CNN

Michael Werz

Climate Change, Migration, and Nontraditional Security Threats in China Report

Climate Change, Migration, and Nontraditional Security Threats in China

This report examines the implications of the nexus of climate change, migration, and security in five Chinese hotspots. Our analyses highlight the overlays of these factors in key regions and discuss their impact on domestic and regional policymaking.

Michael Werz, Lauren Reed

Turkey in Turmoil Report
Turkish soldiers patrol the northern Syrian Kurdish town of Tel Abyad, on the border between Syria and Turkey, on October 23, 2019. (Getty/AFP/Bakr Alkasem)

Turkey in Turmoil

The upcoming Turkish elections will shape the future of a key NATO ally.

Michael Werz, Max Hoffman

Erdoğan Aims to Distract with His Latest Remarks Against Israel Article
Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan addresses lawmakers and supporters of his ruling Justice and Development Party at the parliament in Ankara, Turkey, Tuesday, June 11, 2013. (AP)

Erdoğan Aims to Distract with His Latest Remarks Against Israel

The Turkish prime minister’s statement blaming Israel for last month’s military coup in Egypt is simply another attempt to divert attention away from Turkey’s serious issues.

Max Hoffman, Matthew Duss, Michael Werz

Freedom of the Press and Expression in Turkey Report
A montage of nine Turkish newspaper front pages are seen in Istanbul, Monday, June 13, 2011. (AP/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Freedom of the Press and Expression in Turkey

Press freedom and freedom of expression in Turkey have been threatened, but the United States has a vested interest in ensuring that Turkey protects its vibrant political discourse.

Max Hoffman, Michael Werz

Climate Change, Migration, and Conflict in South Asia Report
In areas of existing conflict in South Asia, added stressors of climate change and changing migration patterns could be a security concern. (AP/Anupam Nath)

Climate Change, Migration, and Conflict in South Asia

Analyzing South Asia through the prism of climate, migration, and security in Assam and the surrounding region provides useful insights into the underlying trends shaping the entire region and the risks posed by current long-term trajectories.

Arpita Bhattacharyya, Michael Werz

Syria Goes from Bad to Worse Article
Syrian boys play in the rubble of house that was destroyed during a military operation by the Syrian pro-Assad army in the town of Taftanaz, east of Idleb, Syria. (AP/Khalil Hamra)

Syria Goes from Bad to Worse

Russia and China have nothing to gain from opposing a new U.N. Security Council resolution to stop the ever-increasing violence, write Michael Werz and Ken Sofer.

Michael Werz, Ken Sofer

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