The German Marshall Fund announces today that it will open a seventh European office, in Warsaw, Poland, in June 2011.

“Recognizing that Poland’s place in Europe and in the transatlantic relationship is only increasing in importance and prominence, it is my pleasure to announce that GMF will open an office in Warsaw in June 2011,” said GMF President Craig Kennedy, before introducing an event featuring a speech by Polish President Bronisław Komorowski.

“This office will continue our deepening cooperation with Poland, its government, and its NGO, think tank, and business sectors in service of a stronger transatlantic community.”

The Warsaw office will join GMF offices in Berlin, Paris, Brussels, Belgrade, Ankara, and Bucharest, and smaller GMF representations in Bratislava, Turin, and Stockholm, in furthering GMF’s mission to strengthen cooperation on transatlantic and global issues.

The office will be directed by Andrew A. Michta, a Polish-born American professor at Rhodes College, and the office will otherwise be staffed by Polish nationals, including longtime GMF staffer Michal Baranowski, who will move to Warsaw from Washington. Michta will also be a Senior Transatlantic Fellow.

Michta is the M. W. Buckman Distinguished Professor of International Studies at Rhodes College and is a Senior Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington. From 2005-2009 he was Professor of National Security Studies and Director of Studies of the Senior Executive Seminar at the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies in Germany. He holds a Ph.D. in International Relations from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, DC, and is the author of several books on NATO, European politics, security and transatlantic relations.

The Warsaw office will work on a host of transatlantic, European, Central European, and Eastern Neighborhood issues through convening, research and analysis, and networking, often in close cooperation with GMF’s Washington headquarters and other offices and representations in Europe.

“We have thought about opening an office in Poland for many years, and now clearly is the right time,” Kennedy said, noting that Poland is playing an ever-larger role within the EU, in dealing with EU neighbors like Russia, and in contributing to NATO and its missions, such as in Afghanistan.

The German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) is a non-partisan American public policy and grantmaking institution dedicated to promoting better understanding and cooperation between North America and Europe on transatlantic and global issues.

GMF does this by supporting individuals and institutions working in the transatlantic sphere, by convening leaders and members of the policy and business communities, by contributing research and analysis on transatlantic topics, and by providing exchange opportunities to foster renewed commitment to the transatlantic relationship. In addition, GMF supports a number of initiatives to strengthen democracies.

Founded in 1972 through a gift from Germany as a permanent memorial to Marshall Plan assistance, GMF maintains a strong presence on both sides of the Atlantic. In addition to its headquarters in Washington, DC, GMF has six offices in Europe: Berlin, Paris, Brussels, Belgrade, Ankara, and Bucharest. GMF also has smaller representations in Bratislava, Turin, and Stockholm.