Dennis Ross

Amb. Dennis Ross is a counselor and William Davidson Distinguished Fellow at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy since 2011. For more than 12 years, Amb. Ross played a leading role in shaping the Middle East peace process, dealing directly with all parties as the U.S. point man on the peace process in both the George H. W. Bush and Clinton administrations.

He served two years as special assistant to President Obama and National Security Council Senior Director for the Central Region, and a year as special advisor to Secretary of State Clinton. Previously Amb. Ross was director of the State Department's Policy Planning Staff in the first Bush administration. He played a prominent role in U.S. policy toward the former Soviet Union, the unification of Germany and its integration into NATO, arms control negotiations, and the 1991 Gulf War coalition.

Amb. Ross' new book, Be Strong and of Good Courage: How Israel's Most Important Leaders Shaped Its Destiny, written with his colleague David Makovsky, profiles four Israeli prime ministers who made historic choices. It explores lessons these decisions provide on dealing with the fateful choice that Israel's leaders must soon confront or by default become a binational state.

Amb. Ross holds a Ph.D. from UCLA.