Jon B. Alterman
Jon B. Alterman is a senior vice president, holds the Zbigniew Brzezinski Chair in Global Security and Geostrategy, and is director of the Middle East Program at CSIS. Prior to joining CSIS in 2002, he served as a member of the Policy Planning Staff at the U.S. Department of State and as a special assistant to the assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs, and from 2009-2019 he served as a member of the Chief of Naval Operations Executive Panel. In addition to his policy work, he often teaches Middle Eastern studies at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and the George Washington University. Earlier in his career, Alterman was a scholar at the U.S. Institute of Peace and at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and a legislative aide to Senator Daniel P. Moynihan (D-NY) responsible for foreign policy and defense. From 1993 to 1997, Alterman was an award-winning teacher at Harvard University, where he received his Ph.D. in history. Alterman has lectured in more than 35 countries on five continents on subjects related to the Middle East and U.S. policy toward the region. He is the author or coauthor of four books on the Middle East and the editor of five more. In addition to his academic work, he is sought out as a consultant to business and government and is a frequent commentator in print, on radio, and on television. His opinion pieces have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, and other major publications. He is a former international affairs fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, where he is now a life member. He received his A.B. from Princeton University's School of Public and International Affairs.
Areas of Expertise
Media Queries
- H. Andrew Schwartz
- Chief Communications Officer
- 202.775.3242
- aschwartz@csis.org
- Samuel Cestari
- Media Relations Coordinator, External Relations
- 202.775.7317
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In the News
Emboldened Iran Makes Dangerous Gamble on Open Confrontation
Jon B. Alterman in The Wall Street Journal — April 17, 2024
Israel-Iran Confrontation Forces Gulf Powers to Choose Sides
Jon B. Alterman in The Wall Street Journal — April 16, 2024
U.S. officials expect Israel’s response to Iran to be limited, according to NBC
Jon B. Alterman in CNBC — April 16, 2024
Former defense security predicts Iran will launch retaliatory attack
Jon B. Alterman in The Hill — April 5, 2024
US braces for Iran’s response to Israel’s Damascus strike
Jon B. Alterman in The Hill — April 5, 2024
A Détente Option for Iran
Jon B. Alterman in Foreign Affairs — April 3, 2024
Many Iranian options to retaliate against Israel, but all carry risk
Jon B. Alterman in Reuters — April 3, 2024
Iran says Israel bombs its embassy in Syria, kills commanders
Jon B. Alterman in Reuters — April 2, 2024
All Jon B. Alterman Content
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UNRWA at the Epicenter of the Gaza Crisis—Gaza: The Human Toll
Event — April 17, 2024
Is it Possible to Avert Collapse?—Gaza: The Human Toll
Event — December 15, 2023
What a Temporary Ceasefire Means— Gaza: The Human Toll
Event — December 1, 2023
2022 Washington Humanitarian Forum: Closing the Gap
Event — November 9, 2022
Getting the Pandemic Completely Wrong
Commentary by Jon B. Alterman — January 12, 2022
Online Event: Lebanon's Challenges: A Conversation with U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea
Event — November 13, 2020
Online Event: Crisis and Survival Amidst Covid-19 in Yemen
Event — April 27, 2020
Ariane Tabatabai: COVID-19 in Iran
Podcast Episode by Jon B. Alterman and Will Todman — April 21, 2020
Jon Alterman & McKinley Knoop: COVID-19 and Cascading Crises in the Middle East
Podcast Episode by Jon B. Alterman — March 25, 2020
Global Trends in Humanitarian Assistance
Event — October 30, 2017