ABOUT THE PROGRAM

GMF  contributes to enhancing cooperation between North America and Europe by actively strengthening civil society and democratic institutions in Europe’s post-communist countries.  The Belgrade office, established in 2003, is responsible for GMF programming throughout the Balkan region.  Since 2007, GMF’s Black Sea regional programming has been run from its Bucharest office.  The Belgrade and Bucharest offices also run the Balkan Trust for Democracy and the Black Sea Trust for Regional Cooperation, respectively.  These grantmaking mechanisms provide small-scale support to indigenous civil society and democratic local governments and together total nearly $6 million each year.  In addition, the Bratislava office continues to lead GMF’s programming in Central and Eastern Europe. GMF’s Ankara office was established in 2005 in order to oversee the organization’s Turkey programming, which is complimented by GMF’s Mediterranean program, organized out of Washington, DC.  GMF’s Paris Office is responsible for France programming as well as keeping the pulse of U.S.-European relations.  GMF’s Russia program aims to bring together Americans and Europeans to discuss options about how best to approach Russia. And GMF’s Asia program focuses on promoting transatlantic cooperation on issues in Asia, including Afghanistan/Pakistan and the rise of China.

Asia Program

The Asia Program addresses the implications of Asia’s rise for the West—in particular, how Asia’s resurgence will impact the foreign policy, economic, and domestic challenges and choices facing the transatlantic allies—through a combination of convening, writing, strategic grants, study tours, fellowships, partnerships with other GMF programs, and partnerships with other institutions.

Balkan Trust for Democracy

The Balkan Trust for Democracy (BTD) is a 10-year, $30-million grantmaking initiative that supports democracy, good governance, and Euroatlantic integration in Southeastern Europe. This award-winning public-private partnership was created in 2003 by the German Marshall Fund of the United States, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation.

Black Sea Trust

A public-private partnership modeled on the successful Balkan Trust for Democracy (BTD), the Black Sea Trust (BST) works in collaboration with a range of donors to provide grants to indigenous organizations working to foster and strengthen regional cooperation, civil society, and democratic foundations. BST will be operated as a 10-year initiative, though GMF remains open to considering a longer-term effort.

Mediterranean

The Mediterranean Policy Program promotes a policy-oriented debate on Mediterranean-wide issues with the aim to strengthen transatlantic cooperation and suggest ways to streamline European and U.S. initiatives in the region. The program seeks to highlight the connections between the European and Southern Mediterranean spaces and to understand the relevance of Mediterranean dynamics to larger international and global developments. It does this through research and convening on key functional issues affecting Mediterranean security and development.

Turkey

Turkey is an important transatlantic partner which has been going through a transformation for the last decade. Foreign policy dimension of this transformation and implications for the transatlantic community in particular are widely debated by opinion leaders on both sides of the Atlantic. With the advantage of having an office in Ankara, GMF plays a significant role in this debate. Within this framework, Turkey program of the German Marshall Fund aims at strengthening Turkey’s ties with the transatlantic community and creating a forum where Americans, Europeans, and Turks can learn from one another and address shared challenges.