THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

PRESIDENT NAMES MARTIN INDYK AS AMBASSADOR TO ISRAEL

The President today announced his intention to nominate Martin Indyk, of Washington D.C., as ambassador to Israel.

"I am proud to nominate Martin to this vital post," the President said. "I am confident his extensive background and experience in the region as well as his commitment to furthering the peace process and the role he has played as my advisor on these issues will serve to promote American interests in the Middle East."

Since January 1993, Dr. Indyk has served as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Near East and South Asian Affairs at the National Security Council. During that period, he has served as principal advisor to the President and the National Security Advisor on Arab-Israeli issues, Iraq, Iran and South Asia. He has been a senior member of Secretary Christopher's Middle East peace team and serves as the White House representative on the U.S.-Israel Science and Technology Commission.

Prior to entering the government, Dr. Indyk served for eight years as the Executive Director of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, a research institute that specializes in Arab-Israeli relations. He was also an adjunct professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies where he taught Israeli politics and foreign policy. Dr. Indyk has published widely on U. S. policy towards the Arab- Israeli peace process and on U.S. - Israel relations.

Martin Indyk was born on July 1, 1951, in London, England. He was raised and educated in Australia where he received a Bachelor of Economics from Sydney University and a Ph.D. in International Relations from the Australian National University. Dr. Indyk is married to Jill Collier and has two children, Sarah (14) and Jacob (10).

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