The US has appointed former ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro as the State Department's Iran policy team as a senior adviser to US envoy for Iran Rob Malley.
State Department officials told Walla News that Shapiro is expected to focus on coordinating with Israel on the nuclear issue, and especially on Iranian activity in the region.
Walla said that Israel is concerned about the situation following the suspension of the Vienna talks after the Iranian presidential elections. It is still unclear if the negotiations will resume.
The US and Israel are working on an alternative plan if the diplomatic channels remained suspended, in which case Shapiro will have an important role.
Shapiro was the US ambassador to Tel Aviv for six years during the two terms of President Barack Obama.
After the election of Donald Trump, he did not return to Washington but instead remained in Tel Aviv and worked as a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Research at Tel Aviv University.
Shapiro went through a security clearance process and started working last week as a "part-time senior adviser" to Malley.
Shapiro, who participated in several negotiations on Iran, provided advice to White House officials before a meeting between President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, though he did not meet the Israeli delegation.
Shapiro will spend time between Washington and Tel Aviv, 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, the foreign ministry, and the defense ministry to enhance coordination and allow a more intimate dialogue about Iran.
After Biden was elected in 2020, Shapiro wrote an op-ed for The Washington Post saying he supported backing the nuclear deal.
However, he noted that he was aware of the Israeli concerns and believed the two countries should enter into talks to formulate a joint strategy, instead of reaching a confrontation, as was the case in 2015, when former PM Benjamin Netanyahu publicly opposed Obama’s decision on a nuclear agreement.
Walla quoted a US State Department official as saying that Malley had recruited Shapiro as part of his commitment to bring Iran experts with diverse opinions into the negotiations.
Shapiro is considered a hardliner in his stance toward Iran, and he brings to Malley's team the viewpoint of Israel and the Gulf states, according to Walla.
"In light of Shapiro's experience in the region, he will help us think about the regional implications of the negotiations with Iran and will be able to contribute greatly in terms of coordination with Israel. He knows the area. People in the region know him, and he brings a point of view that will contribute to our thinking," said a senior State Department official.
