Middle East Policy Council

The Middle East Policy Council (MEPC) is a Washington, D.C.-based 501(c)3 non-profit organization that produces analysis and commentary on issues impacting U.S. national interests in the Middle East. It was founded in 1981 under the stated mission to "expand public discussion and understanding of issues affecting U.S. policy in the Middle East." The MEPC's website states that it is interested primarily in "contributing to the American understanding of the political, economic, and cultural issues that affect U.S. interests in the Middle East."

MEPC was originally named the American Arab Affairs Council and was co-founded by Richard Curtiss and George Naifeh. Richard Curtiss later founded the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs and George Naifeh remained president of the MEPC until 1991. Subsequent presidents include George McGovern (1991-1997) and Charles W. Freeman, Jr. (1997-2009). Frank Anderson was the president of the MEPC from 2009 to April 2012. Anderson served in the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency for 26 years. He served three tours of duty in the Middle East as an agency station chief, headed the Afghan Task Force (1987-89), and was chief of the Near East and South Asia Division. The Board announced in late 2013 that Ford M. Fraker had been appointed as the new president of the organization.

The Council advances its mission through three programs: the quarterly journal Middle East Policy; the Capitol Hill Conference Series for policy makers and their staffs; and professional development workshops for K-12 educators through the Teach Mideast arm.

According to the Council web site:

"Fresh thinking and new insights have been our stock in trade from the beginning. The policy practitioners, analysts, economists and academics appearing in our venues have provided a wide diversity of views on the region stretching from Morocco to Afghanistan and from Central Asia to Oman. They question conventional wisdom and explain complex issues without oversimplifying them. A receptive audience has welcomed these efforts from the appearance of the first issue of the journal."

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