Letter in Support of Colin Kahl

Letter in Support of Dr.
Kahl’s Confirmation
Dear Chairman Reed, Ranking Member Inhofe, and Senate Armed Services
Committee Members,
We are writing to convey our strong support of Dr. Colin Kahl’s nomination to serve as
Undersecretary of Defense for Policy. Dr. Kahl is eminently qualified for this critically important
role, having served as Deputy Assistant to President Obama and National Security Advisor to
then-Vice President Biden. He also served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense (DASD) for
the Middle East in the Obama Administration, when he was awarded the Medal for Outstanding
Public Service by former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates.
As Dr. Kahl testified when appearing before your Committee, he believes “that the U.S.-Israel
security relationship must remain ironclad, and it serves the vital national interests of both
countries.” Dr. Kahl’s view was shaped by years of firsthand experience working to support
Israel’s right to self-defense and qualitative military edge (QME) and helping to shape and
further U.S.-Israel security assistance. During his three years as DASD, Dr. Kahl conducted
more than 100 meetings with senior Israeli Defense Forces and Ministry of Defense officials and
travelled to Israel 13 times to strengthen the U.S.-Israel security relationship. Dr. Kahl was an
early advocate for U.S. funding for Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system, writing the initial
Pentagon memo that moved the policy recommendation forward in 2009. The success of Iron
Dome in the decade since has saved countless Israeli lives. While at the White House, he
supported the ten-year, $38 billion U.S.-Israel Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which
includes U.S. assistance for Iron Dome and other missile defense systems.
Just as we are confident that Dr. Kahl is committed to the U.S.-Israel relationship, we also know
he has never wavered in his effort to prevent a nuclear-armed Iran. As DASD, Dr. Kahl
spearheaded DOD efforts to counterbalance Iran while maintaining Israel’s QME, and oversaw
military contingency planning for Iran. Dr. Kahl worked alongside CENTCOM and the Joint
Staff to enhance American military posture in the Gulf region in order to deter Iranian aggression
and ensure a credible U.S. military threat, while supporting diplomatic efforts to verifiably
constrain Iran’s nuclear program. As he testified, Dr. Kahl is “clear-eyed about the threat Iran
poses, not just to our forces in the region, but to our allies and partners in the region, Israel first
and foremost.”
Given Dr. Kahl’s strong support of Israel and firm approach to Iran, we strongly oppose the
smear campaign against him and the use of his nomination as a proxy for relitigating the 2015
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Dr. Kahl is one of the leading national security
practitioners in the country, who has demonstrated an expert understanding of the Iranian threat.
He has the full confidence of President Biden and Secretary of Defense Austin. He is committed
first and foremost to furthering America’s national security interests in the Middle East, which
includes thwarting Iran’s nuclear ambitions, nefarious regional activities and aggression,
proliferation of ballistic missiles, and human rights violations, while ensuring the security of our
allies and partners, especially Israel.
We are proud to support Dr. Colin Kahl’s nomination because he has dedicated his career to
advancing our national security and defense and urge the Committee and the Senate to vote to
confirm him as Undersecretary of Defense for Policy. Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
• Amb. Dan Shapiro, Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel

• Amb. Martin Indyk, Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel
• Ms. Michele Flournoy, Former Undersecretary of Defense for Policy
• Halie Soifer, CEO, Jewish Democratic Council of America
• Rep. Steve Israel, Former Member of Congress
• Rep. Mel Levine, Former Member of Congress
• Rep. Howard Berman, Former Member of Congress
• Rep. Ron Klein, Former Member of Congress; Board Chair, Jewish Democratic Council
of America
• Amb. Dan Kurtzer, Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel and Egypt
• Amb. James B. Cunningham, Former Ambassador to Afghanistan, Israel and the United
Nations
• Amb. Dana Shell Smith, Former Ambassador to Qatar and Senior Foreign Service
Officer
• Amb. Mike McFaul, Former U.S. Ambassador to Russia
• Amb. Norm Eisen, Former US Ambassador to the Czeck Republic
• Amb. Alexander Vershbow, Former Assistant Secretary of Defense, NATO Deputy
Secretary General, and Ambassador to Russia
• Amb. S. Fitzgerald Haney, Former U.S. Ambassador to Costa Rica
• Amb. Richard Burt, Former U.S. Ambassador to Germany, Former National Security
Advisor to John McCain for President (2000 and 2008)
• General John R. Allen, General, USMC (Ret.), Former Senior Advisor to SECDEF on
Middle East Security
• Jeremy M. Weinstein, Former Deputy to the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations •
Eliot A. Cohen, Former Counselor, Department of State
• Jeremy Bash, Former Chief of Staff, Department of Defense
• Dr. Zachary Mears, Former Chief of Staff and Deputy Chief of Staff, Department of
Defense
• Mara Rudman, Former Deputy National Security Advisor
• Adam Szubin, Former Acting Under Secretary, Office of Terrorism and Financial
Intelligence, U.S. Department of the Treasury
• Andrew Shapiro, Former Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs •
Tamara Cofman Wittes, Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State • William F.
Wechsler, Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and
Combatting Terrorism
• Ira Forman, Former U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism • Dr.
Bruce D. Jones, Former Special Assistant to the UN Special Representative for the
Middle East Peace Process
• Ilan Goldenberg, Former Chief of Staff to the Special Envoy for Israeli-Palestinian
Negotiations
• Dr. Scott Lasensky, Former Senior Advisor to the U.S. Ambassador to Israel •
Eric Lynn, Former Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Defense
• Caroline Tess, Former Special Assistant to the President
• Suzanne Maloney, Former State Department Policy Planning Staff
• Thomas Wright, Senior Fellow, The Brookings Institution
• Max Boot, Jeane J. Kirkpatrick Senior Fellow in National Security Studies, Council on
Foreign Relations
• Bruce Riedel, The Brookings Institution
• Jack Rosen, President, American Jewish Congress
• Joel Rubin, Executive Director, American Jewish Congress; Former Deputy Assistant
Secretary of State
• Lynn Lyss, Chair, National Jewish Community Relations Advisory Council • Alan P.
Solow, Past Chairman, Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish
Organizations
• Mr. Thomas A. Dine, Former Executive Director of AIPAC and President, Radio Free
Europe/Radio Liberty
• Rabbi Brian Lurie, Former CEO of National United Jewish Appeal
• Greg A. Rosenbaum, Former Chair, National Jewish Democratic Council •
Mr. Martin Raffel, Former Senior VP, Jewish Council for Public Affairs •
Susie Gelman, Board Chair, Israel Policy Forum
• Aaron Keyak, Jewish Engagement Director, Biden for President
• Sarah Bard, Director of Jewish Outreach, Hillary Clinton 2016 Presidential Campaign •
Matt Nosanchuk, Former Liaison to the Jewish Community, Obama-Biden
Administration
• Marc R. Stanley, Former Chair, National Jewish Democratic Council • John S.
Ruskay, Executive Vice President Emeritus, UJA-Federation of New York • Amb.
Alfred H. Moses, Honorary President American Jewish Committee, Chairman Emeritus
UN Watch
*Institutional affiliations listed for purposes of professional identification do not necessarily
indicate institutional or organizational endorsement.

Letter in Support of Colin Kahl

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Letter in Support of Colin Kahl

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Letter in Support of Colin Kahl

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Letter in Support of Dr.

• Amb. Dan Shapiro, Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel

You might also like