Mark Dubowitz

Mark Dubowitz
Born 11 September 1968
South Africa
Occupation CEO, Foundation for the Defense of Democracies
Citizenship United States
Alma mater Johns Hopkins University
University of Toronto
Website
www.defenddemocracy.org

Mark Dubowitz (11 September 1968) is the CEO of the hawkish think-tank Foundation for Defense of Democracies.[1][2] He is a proponent of sanctions against Iran.[3] He was a leading critic of the Iran nuclear agreement, Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, but then denied the importance of his role after President Trump withdrew from the agreement.[2]

Early life and education

Dubowitz is a citizen of the United States.[4] He was born in South Africa and raised in Toronto.[5]

He has a master's degree in international public policy from Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies, and law and MBA degrees from the University of Toronto.[5][6] He has also studied at Jerusalem's Hebrew University. [7] He spent the first 8 years after law school working on funding technology start-ups in Toronto, as an attorney and venture capitalist in Toronto.[5]

Career

Dubowitz is the CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.[8] He also heads FDD's Center on Sanctions and Illicit Finance and is the author or co-author of twenty studies on economic sanctions.[9] He also is co-chair of the Project on U.S. Middle East Nonproliferation Strategy.[10]

He joined the FDD in 2003 despite "any relevant political or policy experience and coming from a wholly different background" and quickly became an authority on international terrorism and sanctions against states that sponsor terrorism such as Iran and North Korea.[11] "I was a strange kid with an obsession with terrorism and plane hijackings. On September 11th it turned out that terrorism is not just an international problem, after it hit us at home," he told Ynet news. In 2003 I joined a small organization (FDD) despite not having any relevant political or policy experience and coming from a wholly different background." [12]

Dubowitz is a lecturer and senior research fellow at the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto where he teaches and conducts research on international negotiations, sanctions, and Iran's nuclear program.[13]

Opposition to 2015 nuclear deal with Iran

According to the New York Times, "no one outside the Trump administration was a more persistent or effective critic [of the Iran nuclear agreement] than Mark Dubowitz".[2]

He told YnetNews in 2011 that at FDD they "closely monitor international companies that do business with Iran, invest in Iran's energy sector and provide important equipment and technologies to this sector.[14] They also monitor the movement of commercial vessels coming into and leaving Iran. [15]

Dubowitz opposed the Obama administration's nuclear diplomacy with Iran, testifying before Congress on several occasions against the nuclear talks, including to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (February 2014),[16] Senate Banking Committee (January 27, 2015),[17] House Financial Services Committee (July 22, 2015), the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (July 29, 2015),[18] Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs (August 5, 2015),[19] and the House Ways and Means Committee (November 4, 2015).[20]

Dubowitz authored or co-authored several op-eds on the Iran deal, including a July 8, 2015 Wall Street Journal op-ed with Reuel Marc Gerecht The Iran Nuclear Paradox,[21] a Dubowitz/Gerecht Wall Street Journal op-ed Iran's Negotiating Triumph Over Obama and America,[22] a November 8, 2011 New York Times op-ed with Gerecht, Don't Give Up on Sanctions,[23] and many others. Recently, Dubowitz authored How to Get a Better Deal With Iran,[24] and Amend Iran Deal to Improve It: Opposing View in Foreign Policy and USA Today.[25]

Dubowitz has co-authored many reports against the Iran deal for the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. These included "Improving the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action" which he co-authored with Annie Fixler in August 2015; "Iran’s Economic Resilience Against Snapback Sanctions Will Grow Over Time" which he co-authored in August 2015 with Annie Fixler and Rachel Ziemba. On the July 26, 2017 PBS Newshour evening broadcast the subject and Robert Malley exchanged views on Iranian nuclear deal compliance and military intentions.[26]

References

  1. ↑ Kampeas, Ron (July 15, 2015). "Why the Republican Congress Most Likely Cannot Stop the Iran Deal". Haaretz.
  2. 1 2 3 "He Was a Tireless Critic of the Iran Deal. Now He Insists He Wanted to Save It". The New York Times. 2018-05-13. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2018-05-14.
  3. ↑ "U.S. Senators Pushing for Tougher Sanctions on Iran, to the Point of Bankruptcy". Haaretz. Associated Press. November 9, 2012. Retrieved January 18, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Mark Dubowitz profile". Defenddemocracy.org. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 Goodspeed, Peter (January 28, 2012). "Ratcheting Up The Hassle Factor; Expert sees sanctions against Iran wounding the regime by making it difficult to do business". National Post.
  6. ↑ "Master of Global Affairs". Munkschool.utoronto.ca. Retrieved March 22, 2015.
  7. ↑ "The man who fights Iran". Ynet News.
  8. ↑ "Iran-Sanctions Bid Targets Oil, Tanker Companies to Cut Exports". Bloomberg Businessweek. February 14, 2012. Retrieved July 16, 2012.
  9. ↑ "Foundation for Defense of Democracies". Defenddemocracy.org. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  10. ↑ "Press Release - Project on U.S. Middle East Nonproliferation Strategy | Institute for Science and International Security". Isis-online.org. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  11. ↑ "The man who fights Iran". Ynet News.
  12. ↑ "The man who fights Iran". Ynet News.
  13. ↑ "Mark Dubowitz - Master of Global Affairs". Munkschool.utoronto.ca. 2013-08-21. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  14. ↑ "The man who fights Iran". Ynet News.
  15. ↑ "The man who fights Iran". Ynet News.
  16. ↑ "Dubowitz prepared testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee" (PDF). Senate Foreign Relations Committee website. February 4, 2014. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  17. ↑ "Dubowitz prepared testimony to the Senate Banking Committee" (PDF). Oranwatch.org. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  18. ↑ "Congressional Testimony: The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action" (PDF). Foreign.senate.gov. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  19. ↑ "Testimony: Foundation for Defense of Democracies". Defenddemocracy.org. Retrieved 2015-12-24.
  20. ↑ "Testimony: Foundation for Defense of Democracies". Defenddemocracy.org. Retrieved 2015-12-24.
  21. ↑ Marc, Reuel (2015-07-08). "The Iranian Nuclear Paradox". WSJ.com. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  22. ↑ Marc, Reuel (2015-04-03). "Reuel Marc Gerecht and Mark Dubowitz: Iran's Negotiating Triumph Over Obama and America". WSJ.com. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  23. ↑ "Don't Give Up on Sanctions". The New York Times. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  24. ↑ "How to Get a Better Deal With Iran". Foreign Policy. 2015-08-17. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  25. ↑ "Amend Iran deal to improve it: Opposing view". Usat.ly. 2015-08-05. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  26. ↑ PBS Newshour. (26 July 2017). "Trump signals he might pull out of the Iran nuclear deal. What’s at stake?" PBS website Retrieved 26 July 2017.
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