Israel's New U.S. Envoy: Influential Policy Hound Or Another 'CNN Ambassador'?
For the White House, Netanyahu's appointment of Ron Dermer – his closest adviser and known supporter of the Republican Party – as the next ambassador to Washington could mean direct access to the prime minister or another obstacle to peace talks.
By Dina Kraft | Jul.12, 2013 | 6:42 PM
OSTON – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to appoint Ron Dermer, his closest adviser, as Israel's ambassador to the United States, has been getting heat as a seemingly undiplomatic choice for Israel’s number one diplomatic post.
Dermer, who was born and raised in America and has had a long association with the Republican Party, was the one reportedly behind Netanyahu’s public and ultimately embarrassing embrace of Mitt Romney during the U.S. presidential election. Dermer has also been openly skeptical of peace efforts with the Palestinians and of the prospect of a future Palestinian state as part of a two-state solution, although it’s the stated policy goal of the Israeli government.
Foreign policy analysts who follow U.S.-Israel relations closely say it’s important not to read too much into the tea leaves of the new appointment, but do wonder how Dermer might adjust his hardline ideology to his new role in Washington.
“Given that the administration has undertaken this push (toward peace efforts) with the president visiting Israel in March, appealing to young Israelis to support peace, and Secretary Kerry’s speech to the AJC calling on American Jewish constituencies for their support, I'm curious to see how Ambassador Dermer will engage with these efforts,” said Mathew Duss, a policy analyst at The Center for American Progress.
“There may be something deliberate in choosing someone to the right of the prime minister,” said Heather Hurlburt, former special assistant and speechwriter for President Bill Clintonand Executive Director of the National Security Network, a think tank specializing in defense policies. “We are going to have to wait and see.”
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