Turkish Heritage Organization Seeks 2016 U.S. Presidential Candidates' Opinion on Important Security, Economy, Energy and Education Issues

WASHINGTON, Sept. 21, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- The Turkish Heritage Organization (THO) announced today that it has invited 21 U.S. presidential candidates to respond to a detailed questionnaire about the most pressing issues facing the U.S.-Turkey relationship. The questionnaire, which was distributed to all 16 Republican and 5 Democratic candidates, seeks to help the more than 500,000 Turks who live and vote throughout all 50 U.S. states to gain a better understanding of the candidates' positions on the key issues that the next president of the United States will face.

"Turkey has been a crucial ally to the U.S. for many years and was one of the first countries to join the NATO coalition," said Halil Danismaz, President of the THO. "With foreign policy increasingly taking a central role in candidates' issue platforms and Turkish and U.S. military leaders working together to fight ISIS, we believe these questions get to the heart of how to strengthen the U.S.'s relationship with this important partner for years to come."

The questionnaire poses questions related to bilateral security cooperation against ISIS, the Syrian refugee crisis, growing economic cooperation and increasing educational and cultural exchange between the two countries. All candidates have also been encouraged to share their perspectives on the current state of U.S.-Turkey relations and what they see as the biggest areas for improvement in the bilateral relationship.

"Understanding how a potential candidate views the U.S.-Turkey relationship now and moving forward is a key voting issue for Turkish-Americans and, we hope, for all Americans," said Mr. Danismaz. "The THO looks forward to informing voters' decisions on this important aspect of U.S. foreign policy ahead of the 2016 election."

The THO will post responses from candidates as they are received at http://turkheritage.org/en/election.

The Turkish Heritage Organization (THO) is a non-profit organization founded to promote discussion and dialogue around issues of importance in the U.S.-Turkey bilateral relationship as well as Turkey's role in the international community. Learn more at: http://turkheritage.org/ or on Twitter @TurkHeritage.

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SOURCE Turkish Heritage Organization