Ron Dermer, former Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Joins JINSA as Gemunder Center Non-Resident Distinguished Fellow

JINSA is pleased to announce that Ron Dermer, the former Israeli ambassador to the United States who helped guide U.S.-Israel relations through a critically important period and played a pivotal role in several historic diplomatic achievements, has joined The Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA) as a Distinguished Fellow at its Gemunder Center for Defense and Strategy.

At JINSA, Dermer’s work will focus on strengthening the U.S.-Israel alliance, addressing the threat posed by Iran, capitalizing on regional opportunities following the Abraham Accords, and combatting efforts to weaken the Jewish state.

From 2013 to 2021, Dermer served as Israel’s ambassador to the United States and was widely seen as one of the most consequential ambassadors ever in that role, as well as one of the most creative and influential ambassadors from any country during his tenure in Washington. One of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s closest advisers, he was a driving force behind many of the era’s most important diplomatic developments, working in close partnership with U.S. counterparts on securing long-term military assistance and missile defense funding for Israel, moving the American embassy to Jerusalem, attaining U.S. recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, implementing the maximum pressure campaign against Iran, and achieving the historic breakthrough that led to the Abraham Accords and the normalization of Israel’s relations with several Arab nations. Throughout his tenure, he also remained a fixture in the media as a powerful voice defending the Jewish State.

Speaking about his affiliation with JINSA, Dermer said: “Like Israel, JINSA punches well beyond its weight. It is an invaluable resource in both thinking about the strategic challenges facing the United States and Israel and in crafting policies that can meet those challenges. From formulating policies that would effectively confront the danger of a nuclear Iran to advocating for a U.S.-Israel mutual defense treaty to making the case for prepositioning U.S. weapons in Israel, Mike Makovsky and his colleagues at JINSA have done incredible work. I look forward to partnering with JINSA on developing ways to further strengthen the unique alliance been America and Israel and advance peace and security in the Middle East.”

Dermer’s arrival marks another milestone for JINSA as it expands its ranks of policy experts and research capabilities in support of its mission to strengthen the U.S.-Israel strategic relationship and advance America’s national security interests in the Middle East. Dermer is widely recognized as one of the world’s foremost authorities on the bilateral relationship between Washington and Jerusalem, and the central role it should play in securing the vital interests of the democratic West in the 21st century.

Michael Makovsky, JINSA’s President and CEO, said, “I am thrilled to have Ambassador Dermer join JINSA. As one of the leading foreign policy minds and practitioners of his generation, who has so much knowledge and has been so influential on a range of issues critical to U.S.-Israel relations, Ron will help make JINSA an even more important resource in Washington and Jerusalem, and in the policy debate across the United States. He is also a real mensch, a longtime friend, and it will be a real pleasure for me personally to work more closely with him.”

A native of Miami Beach, Fl., Dermer earned a degree in Finance and Management from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania and a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE) from Oxford University. He is a former columnist for The Jerusalem Post and in 2004 co-authored with Natan Sharansky the best-selling book, The Case For Democracy: The Power of Freedom to Overcome Tyranny and Terror. From 2005-2008, Dermer served as Israel’s Minister of Economic Affairs in the United States. From 2009 to 2013, he served as Senior Advisor to Prime Minister Netanyahu.