ISIS Think Tanks

ISIS are financed by the same countries and companies funds major think-tanks who shape western foreign policy. For example Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates have been exposed as ISIS major financer and as it so happens also financers of The Atlantic Council.

The list of Atlantic Council foreign government entities "Honor Roll of Contributors" include:

Petroleum Pipeline Corporation (BOTAS) (Turkey)
Istanbul Natural Gas Distribution Co. (IGDAS) (Turkey)
Turkey Army College
The Electricity Generation Company (EUAS) (Turkey)
Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO) (Turkey)

And foreign governments:
Qatar
Saudi Arabia
United Arab Emirates (UAE)

Who finances ISIS?
"The most important source of ISIS financing to date has been support coming out of the Gulf states, primarily Saudi Arabia but also Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates," Meyer told Deutsche Welle. The Gulf states' motivation in financing groups like ISIS was to support their fight against the regime of President Bashar al Assad in Syria, according to Meyer.

ISIS has set up an extensive network of middlemen in neighboring territories and countries, with the aim of trading crude oil for cash and in kind. Upon extraction, oil is first lightly refined on site and then a supply-chain network brings it to the market. The supply chain comprises the following localities in Turkey: Sanliura, Urfa, Hakkari, Siirt, Batman, Osmaniya, Gaziantep, Sirnak, Adana, Kahramarmaras, Adiyaman and Mardin.

The string of trading hubs ends up in Adana, home to the major tanker shipping port of Ceyhan on the Eastern Mediterranean. The terminal is operated by Botas International Limited (BIL), a Turkish state company.

Think Tanks as Lobbyists: Exposé Shows U.S. Groups Receive Millions to Push Foreign Nations' Agendas
The groups named in the report include the Brookings Institution, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and the Atlantic Council, and most of the money comes from countries in Europe, the Middle East and Asia, including the oil-producing nations of the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Norway.

Foreign Powers Buy Influence at Think Tanks
The arrangements involve Washington’s most influential think tanks, including the Brookings Institution, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and the Atlantic Council. Each is a major recipient of overseas funds, producing policy papers, hosting forums and organizing private briefings for senior United States government officials that typically align with the foreign governments’ agendas.