Message from Ambassador Sensoy to TASSA community

Message by H.E. Nabi ensoy Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey to the United States

Dear members of the Turkish - American Scientists and Scholars Association,

It is a pleasure to be able to address you once again. As you will recall, I had the opportunity to talk with you during the Second Annual Conference of the Turkish - American Scientists and Scholars Association (TASSA) held in Philadelphia on March 25 - 26, 2006. I wish to first point out that as the Turkish Ambassador, being in the company of so many accomplished Turkish scholars and scientists here made me proud. I also wish to express my thanks to the leadership of TASSA for their vision and tireless efforts which have made this young organization strong and vibrant in such a short time. No organization can live, let alone flourish as TASSA has done, without a supportive and involved membership and in that regard, I would like to also thank all of the members. You are the backbone of this organization.

Turkey and the United States enjoy relations firmly anchored in shared values and we cooperate on a wide range of issues. Our countries are close allies and friends that have parallel strategic interests and a political vision founded in establishing peace, security and prosperity in the world. I believe that our relations will grow even deeper in the future.

Yet it would be inaccurate to describe Turkish – American relations through official contacts and government relations alone. One important aspect of our bilateral ties that we must not loose sight of is what we may refer to as the human factor. This can be defined as the network of relations between Turks and Turkish - Americans and Americans here in the United States. In that sense, it is fair to say that the human factor plays a pivotal role in our relations since the understanding of each others way of life and character is vital to further developing these relations. This aspect of our ties can be best handled by the interactions of persons like yourselves with other Americans on a daily basis. These relations create a dynamic of familiarity and understanding that is a pillar of prime importance for our bilateral ties. TASSA members, as accomplished and well integrated members of this society play a significant role in keeping that pillar upright and strong.

I wish to once again congratulate all TASSA members and the leadership on a successful conference and look forward to meeting with you again.