US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday tapped Elliott Abrams, a longtime foreign policy hawk, as the administration's special envoy on Iran. Abrams will replace Brian Hook, who stepped down last week.
Abrams currently serves as the US special Venezuela envoy, a role he is expected to retain.
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The transition comes at a time when the US is struggling to secure unanimous support at the UN for a formal extension of the arms embargo imposed on Iran, which expires in October.
Abrams was a staunch critic of the Obama administration's Iran policies, including the 2015 sanctions relief for nuclear rollback deal.
American Jewish and pro-Israel groups welcomed Abrams' appointment.
President of the American Jewish Congress Jack Rosen said that Abrams "will have little time to settle in," citing the upcoming deadline to extend the UN arms embargo on Iran. He expressed faith that the new appointee, like his predecessor, will "work determinedly towards countering Iran's malignant activities in the Middle East."
B'nai B'rith CEO Daniel Mariaschin said that his organization welcomes the appointment of Abrams, whose "deep experience and longtime knowledge of the region and its players, and his long record of calling out those who engage in malign behavior and incessant support for terrorism, especially Iran, make him eminently qualified for this post."
Endowment for Middle East Truth founder and president Sarah Stern called Abrams "extraordinarily" capable, and "an experienced diplomat and negotiator."
She also said that "Brian Hook did an exemplary job, while acting as the administration's chief envoy on Iran – first in trying to strengthen the flawed [2015] Iranian nuclear deal, and then in an attempt to isolate Iran from the community of nations as a result of the highly stringent US-led sanctions. He has exerted maximal effort in trying to convince the international community about the degree to which Iran had been in violation of the agreement."
Zionist Organization of America president Mort Klein said that Abrams "is a very knowledgeable, highly intelligent, and a committed Zionist and American patriot whom I'm pleased was chosen."
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"We appreciate Brian Hook's service and his determined efforts to combat the Iranian regime's destabilizing actions," AIPAC spokesperson Marshall Wittmann said. "Elliot Abrams brings impressive experience to the effort to ensure that Iran does not obtain a nuclear weapon and prevent its regional aggression."
The Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations said in a statement that it welcomed Abrams, "a formidable diplomat," taking on the new role and maintaining his duties concerning Venezuela. Abrams, the Conference said, is a "strong advocate for the US-Israel relationship and will capably advocate American policy at a critical time. We look forward to working with him as he builds upon Special Representative Hook's success."
JNS.org contributed to this report.
