Ambassador James F. Jeffrey is a decorated diplomat who concluded his foreign service career with tours as U.S. envoy in Iraq and Turkey, has joined The Washington Institute as a visiting fellow, the policy research organization announced today. He currently serves as the Secretary’s Special Representative for Syria Engagement and the Special Envoy to the Global Coalition To Defeat ISIS.

At the Institute, Ambassador Jeffrey will focus his research and writing on U.S. strategies to counter Iran’s efforts to expand its influence in the broader Middle East.

“We are thrilled to welcome a foreign policy practitioner who combines a broad strategic understanding of the Middle East with unsurpassed experience in the field,” says Washington Institute executive director Dr. Robert Satloff. “Ambassador Jeffrey’s presence will inform and enrich our work as we confront the dramatic changes sweeping the region.”

Ambassador James F. Jeffrey, a decorated diplomat who concluded his foreign service career with tours as U.S. envoy in Iraq and Turkey, is a visiting fellow at The Washington Institute where he focuses on U.S. strategies to counter Iran’s efforts to expand its influence in the broader Middle East.

One of the nation’s most respected diplomats, Ambassador Jeffrey has held a series of highly sensitive posts in Washington, D.C., and abroad since joining the Foreign Service in 1977. In addition to his service in Ankara and Baghdad, he served as assistant to the president and deputy national security advisor in the George W, Bush administration, with a special focus on Iran. Previously, at the State Department, he served as principal deputy assistant secretary for the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs at the Department of State, where his responsibilities included leading the Iran policy team and coordinating public diplomacy.

Earlier appointments included service as senior advisor on Iraq to the secretary of state; chargé d’affaires and deputy chief of mission in Baghdad; deputy chief of mission in Ankara; and ambassador in Albania.

“I am delighted to join this outstanding team of Middle East experts and foreign policy practitioners,” Ambassador Jeffrey said. “Helping the foreign policy community to understand the Iranian challenge and devise new approaches is a vital national security priority and I look forward to contributing to that effort.”

A former infantry officer in the U.S. army, Ambassador Jeffrey served in Germany and Vietnam from 1969 to 1976. He received his bachelor’s degree from Northeastern University and his master’s degree from Boston University.