Dan Arbell, U.S Foreign Policy, Middle East and Israel Expert based in Washington D.C., is an Associate Fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) in Washington and a Scholar-in-Residence at the School for International Service and the Center for Israel Studies at American University in Washington.
Formerly a Non Resident Senior Fellow at the Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution in Washington, he completed a comprehensive study on the US-Turkey-Israel Triangle and co-authored a study (under the Center for American Progress) on the US-Israel relationship in a Changing Middle East. At American University he has been teaching courses since 2012 on the intersection between Israeli politics and foreign policy, as well as on the roots of the Arab-Israeli conflict.
Dan is a 25 year veteran of the Israeli Foreign Service, having served in senior posts overseas, mainly in the US and Japan, and having held senior positions at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) Headquarters in Jerusalem. Notably he was Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM) at the Embassy of Israel in Washington D.C and worked as Ambassador Michael Oren's second in command for nearly 3 years (2009-2012). In the 90's he served at the embassy as Ambassador Itamar Rabinovich's Chief of Staff and a member of Israel's negotiating team with Syria (1993-1996) and later as DCM at the Israeli Embassy in Tokyo, Japan (2001-2005). Back in Jerusalem (2005-2009) he was Acting Head of the North America division at the MFA.
He holds a Master's degree (MA) from Hebrew University in Jerusalem in Political Science and a Bachelor's degree (BA) from Hebrew University in World History and Political Science.
He's a frequent guest speaker and lecturer nationwide, as well as an interviewee in leading American, European and Middle Eastern media outlets (including the New York Times, CNN and BBC) focusing on his areas of expertise which include the US-Israel relations, Israel's strategic environment and challenges and Israel's place in the changing Middle East, the Turkish-Israeli relationship and the politics of natural gas in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Dan is married to Sarit and together they have four children.
