Former US Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro has joined the State Department's Iran team and will serve as a senior adviser to US envoy for Iran Rob Malley, the Axios news website reported on Monday.
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Shapiro was stationed in Israel from 2011-2017. He served on the National Security Council under the Obama administration before being tapped for the role of Washington's envoy to Jerusalem and was closely involved in crafting the Comprehensive Plan of Action between world powers and Iran in 2015.
Shapiro has since emerged as one of the pivotal Israel policy figures in the Biden administration and he is likely to play a key role in the US efforts to stitch together a new nuclear deal with Tehran.
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett met with US President Joe Biden in the White House on Friday to discuss the Iranian threat.
The American president stated that the US is committed to ensuring Iran never developed a nuclear weapon but noted he prefers to exhaust all diplomatic avenues first.
"We are going to discuss the threat from Iran and our commitment to ensure Iran never develops a nuclear weapon. We're putting diplomacy first and seeing where that takes us. But if diplomacy fails, we're ready to turn to other options," Biden said without elaborating.
Bennett, for his part, stressed that Israel will "never outsource our security. It's our responsibility to take care of our fate," and thanked Biden for his support on the matter.
The Vienna talks between the US and Iran on a mutual return to the 2015 nuclear deal were suspended after the Iranian elections in June, which installed hardliner Ebrahim Raisi as president of the Islamic republic.
Just days after taking office, Raisi insinuated he would "feel comfortable" with an escalation vis-à-vis the West at this time.
His policy was made immediately made evident when he named Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, an anti-Western diplomat as foreign minister and point man to the nuclear talks.
Amirabdollahian is believed to have close ties with Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards, as well as with Hezbollah – Iran's proxy in Lebanon – and other Iranian agents across the Middle East.
"Amirabdollahian is a hardline diplomat," an Iranian nuclear official said after the appointment. "If the foreign ministry remains in charge of Iran's nuclear dossier, then obviously Tehran will adopt a very tough line in the talks."
"Raisi's choice shows that he gives importance to regional issues in his foreign policy," a former Iranian official said.
Shapiro, who according to Walla news is expected to be the administration's liaison to Israel on all things concerning the Islamic republic, recently went through a security clearance process and started working last week as a "part-time senior adviser" to Malley.
State Department officials told Axios that Shapiro will spend half of his time in Washington and half in Israel, where he'll work out of the US Embassy.
"One of his main missions will be to engage in discussions with the Israeli prime minister's office, foreign ministry and ministry of defense to enhance coordination and allow a more intimate dialogue about Iran," the report said.
"Dan's experience and knowledge of the region and the fact that people in the region know him will help us in thinking about the regional aspects of the Iranian issue and will contribute a lot to our coordination with Israel," a State Department official told the website.
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