M. Onur Özlü, an International Relations fourth year student, worked for the United States Senate in Washington DC as an intern for the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations from June 18th until the summer adjournment in August. As the first Turkish national to have ever worked for the United States Senate since its foundation in 1787, Onur delivered a speech on the Turkish American Alliance at his inauguration by the Committee President Senator Joseph R. Biden at a ceremony on the Senate Floor before 100 Senators and the press.
Onur worked closely with many senators on a variety of subjects during his internship and provided them with the background information they needed while voting on proposed bills or resolutions. His duties included preparing assessment reports and background and policy papers on some critical issues, based on meetings with caucuses, foreign diplomats or members of think-tanks. Some of the issues included: the so-called Armenian "Genocide"; the question of Cyprus; the issue of NATO expansion; the peace bill on the Middle East; American payments of United Nations dues; and, the revision of the NAFTA agreement. He attended joint meetings of the US Senate, the Pentagon, and the State Department, and made several presentations both on the Senate Floor and to the Foreign Relations Committee. Onur completed his internship with honors and was decorated with the Best Intern Prize by the US Congress. He was also congratulated by the Turkish Ambassador to the United States during a reception at the Turkish Embassy in Washington, DC.
After winning the Best Intern Prize, Onur continued as an intern, for an additional two weeks, at the US Senate Committee on Finance on Wall Street, New York City, where he worked on the preparation of a report on Foreign Direct Investment in the United States.