Global think tanks

Most think tanks are non-governmental organisations, but some are semi-autonomous institutions within government or other political, commercial or military structures.

Think tanks publish articles, studies or even draft laws on political or social issues. These are then used by governments, companies, media organisations, social movements or other groups.

Think tanks range from those associated with academia and research to openly ideological ones that insist on a particular policy.

Later generations of think tanks tended to have a more ideological orientation. Modern think tanks emerged as a phenomenon in the UK between the 19th and early 20th century. Before 1945, they tended to focus on economic issues related to industrialisation and urbanisation. During the Cold War, many think tanks were created in Western countries, which often directed government policy. More than half of all think tanks in existence today were created after 1980.

French Think Tanks

The French Institute for International Relations (IFRI) was founded in 1979 and is the third oldest think tank in Western Europe, after the Royal Institute for International Relations (United Kingdom, 1920) and the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sweden, 1960). IFRI's main objectives are the development of applied public policy research on international issues and the promotion of a constructive dialogue between researchers, practitioners and opinion leaders.

France is also home to the European Union Institute for Security Studies (EUISS), the Paris-based European Union Agency and a think tank that studies security issues. There are also several think tanks focused on business development, notably the Fondation Concorde in Paris. The foundation aims to improve the competitiveness of small and medium-sized French companies and tries to revive entrepreneurship in France.

The main left-wing think tanks in France are the Fondation Jean Jaurès, structurally linked to the French Socialist Party, and the independent left-wing think tank Terra Nova. The latter reports and analyses current public policy issues from a 'progressive' perspective and contributes to the intellectual renewal of social democracy.

GenerationLibre is another important French think tank, founded by Gaspar Koenig in 2013. The organisation is independent of all political parties. The think tank aims to promote freedoms in France in terms of fundamental rights, the economy and social issues. GenerationLibre is described as an organisation that can reach out to the right on issues of free enterprise and regulation and to the left on issues such as basic income, same-sex marriage and the legalisation of marijuana.

German think tanks

In Germany, political parties are closely linked to research foundations that play a role in policy-making. These foundations include the Konrad-Adenauer Foundation (Christian Democratic Union), the Friedrich Ebert Foundation (Social Democratic Party), the Hans-Seidel-Stiftung (Christian Social Union), the Heinrich Böll Foundation (affiliated with the Greens), the Friedrich Naumann Foundation (affiliated with the Free Democratic Party) and the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation.

The German Institute for International and Security Affairs is a think tank dealing with foreign policy issues.

Another think tank is the Atlantic Community. According to its founders, it is "an independent, non-partisan, non-profit organisation, established as a joint project of the Atlantic Initiative e.v. and the United States Atlantic Initiative".

The Institute for Media and Communication Policy deals with media issues.

Transparency International is a think tank that investigates the role of corporate and political corruption in international development.

UK think tanks

The role of think tanks in the UK is the same as in the US: they seek to shape the country's domestic and foreign policy. There is collaboration between British and American think tanks, for example, the London-based Royal Institute of International Affairs and the Council on Foreign Relations were invented at the Paris Peace Conference in 1919 and have remained 'linked' organisations.

The Bow Group, founded in 1951, is the oldest centre-right think tank and many of its members continue to be members of the British Parliament or the European Parliament. Previous chairmen include Conservative Party leader Michael Howard, Margaret Thatcher's government minister Geoffrey Howe, Chancellor of the Exchequer Norman Lamont and former British Telecom chairman Christopher Bland.

A number of influential centre-right think tanks have sprung up since 2000, including the Policy Exchange, the Centre for Social Justice and, more recently, Onward.

Russian Think Tanks

According to the Institute for Foreign Policy Studies, there are 112 think tanks in Russia, some of which occupied four of the top ten places in the 2011 ranking of the 'Thirty Best Think Tanks in Central and Eastern Europe'.

Important Russian think tanks:

•     Centre for Analysis of the Government of the Russian Federation;
•     Carnegie Centre in Moscow;
•     Institute of American and Canadian Studies;
•     Institute of World Economy and International Relations;
•     Moscow State Institute of International Relations.

American Think Tanks

The oldest American think tank is the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, founded in 1910. Other early 20th century organisations now classified as think tanks are the Hoover Institution (1919), the Twentieth Century Foundation (1919), the National Bureau of Economic Research (1920), the Council on Foreign Relations (1921) and the Social Science Research Council (1923). The Great Depression and its aftermath spawned several economic think-tanks. These included the National Planning Association (1934), the Tax Foundation (1937) and the Committee for Economic Development (1943).

In collaboration with the Douglas Aircraft Company, the Air Force created the RAND Corporation in 1946 to develop weapons technology and strategic defence analysis.

The Hudson Institute, a conservative American think tank, was founded in 1961 by futurist and military strategist Herman Kahn and his colleagues at the RAND Corporation. Recent members include Mike Pompeo, Secretary of State under Donald Trump.

More recently, 'progressive' and liberal think tanks have been established. These include the Centre for American Progress and the Centre for Research on Access to Education and Leadership (CREAL). The organisation has close ties with former US President Barack Obama and other Democrats.

Conclusions

In Russia, however, think tanks are not funded to the same extent as in Western countries. Moreover, the Carnegie Centre in Moscow itself is affiliated to a US-based centre and, in fact, acts as an agent of outside influence. In the past, Western foundations and governments have generously funded other Russian think tanks at universities and the Academy of Sciences to use them as instruments of their influence. Of course, the Foreign Agents Act separated the wheat from the chaff and protected the country from further manipulation and informational and ideological influence from the West. However, it is not enough. Patriotic think tanks must be supported at the appropriate level so that they can conduct their work systematically and strategically.

Source

Translation by Costantino Ceoldo