Ambassador Dennis Ross is counselor and Ziegler distinguished fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, a foundation dedicated to informed debate on U.S. interests in the Middle East. For more than twelve years, Ross played a leading role in shaping U.S. involvement in the Middle East peace process. A skilled diplomat, Ross was this country's point person on the peace process in both the George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton administrations. He facilitated the 1994 Israel-Jordan peace treaty, was instrumental in assisting Israelis and Palestinians in reaching the 1995 Interim Agreement, and brokered the Hebron Accord in 1997.

A scholar and diplomat with more than two decades of experience in Soviet and Middle East policy, Ross worked closely with Secretaries of State James Baker, Warren Christopher, and Madeleine Albright. He was awarded the Presidential Medal for Distinguished Federal Civilian Service by President Clinton, and Secretaries Baker and Albright presented him with the State Department's highest award. He is a frequent contributor to the Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, and The New York Times. His book, The Missing Peace, a comprehensive look at the Middle East peace process, was published of 2004.