Aaron David Miller is an American Middle East analyst, author, and negotiator. He is a senior fellow at the

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (CEIP) is a nonpartisan international affairs think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C., with operations in Europe, South Asia, East Asia, and the Middle East, as well as the United States. Foun ...

, focusing on U.S. foreign policy. He previously was vice president for new initiatives at the

Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (WWICS) or Wilson Center is a Washington, D.C.–based think tank A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topi ...

, and has been an advisor to both Republican and Democratic secretaries of state. He is a Global Affairs Analyst for

CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...

. Miller worked for the

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy of the United State ...

for 24 years (1978–2003). Between 1988 and 2003, Miller served six secretaries of state as an advisor on Arab-Israeli negotiations, participating in American efforts to broker agreements between

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

, and the

Palestinians Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenou ...

. He left the State Department in January 2003 to serve as president of Seeds of Peace, an international youth organization founded in 1993. In January 2006, Miller joined the

in Washington, D.C., first as public policy scholar, and later as vice president for new initiatives. In 2014, Miller published his fifth book, ''The End of Greatness: Why America Can't Have (and Doesn't Want) Another Great President.''

Background

Miller was born to a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

, the eldest son of Ruth (née Ratner) and Samuel H. Miller. He attended Shaker Heights High School, graduating in 1967.

Education

Miller began his undergraduate career at

Tulane University The Tulane University of Louisiana (commonly referred to as Tulane University) is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by a cohort of medical doctors, it b ...

and spent a semester at the

University of Warwick The University of Warwick ( ; abbreviated as ''Warw.'' in post-nominal letters) is a public research university on the outskirts of Coventry between the West Midlands and Warwickshire, England. The university was founded in 1965 as part of ...

on a history honors exchange program before graduating from the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

with a B.A. in 1971. Continuing on toward an M.A. in

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

history, Miller changed fields to Middle Eastern and American diplomacy and spent 1973 to 1974 in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

studying Arabic and Hebrew. He completed his Ph.D. in 1977. His dissertation, ''Search for Security: Saudi Arabian Oil and American Foreign Policy, 1939–1949'' was published by the University of North Carolina Press in 1980, and in paperback in 1991.

Government career

Miller entered the Department of State in November 1978 as an historian in the

Bureau of Public Affairs The Bureau of Public Affairs (PA) was the part of the United States Department of State that carries out the secretary of state's mandate to help Americans understand the importance of foreign policy. The bureau was led by the assistant secret ...

Office of the Historian, where he edited the documentary series ''Foreign Relations of the United States''. In November 1980, he worked as an analyst for Lebanon and the Palestinians in the State Department's Bureau of Intelligence and Research (INR). Awarded an International Affairs Fellowship by the

Council on Foreign Relations The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American think tank focused on Foreign policy of the United States, U.S. foreign policy and international relations. Founded in 1921, it is an independent and nonpartisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit organi ...

, he spent 1982–83 at the

Center for Strategic and International Studies The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) is an American think tank based in Washington, D.C. From its founding in 1962 until 1987, it was an affiliate of Georgetown University, initially named the Center for Strategic and Inte ...

and the CFR in New York, where he wrote his second book, ''The PLO and the Politics of Survival''. The following year he returned to INR and served a temporary tour at the U.S. Embassy in

Amman, Jordan Amman ( , ; , ) is the capital and the largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of four million as of 2021, Amman is Jordan's primate city and is the List of largest cities in the ...

, before joining the Secretary of State's Policy Planning Staff in 1985. Between 1985 and 1993, Miller advised Secretaries of State

George Shultz George Pratt Shultz ( ; December 13, 1920February 6, 2021) was an American economist, businessman, diplomat and statesman. He served in various positions under two different Republican presidents and is one of the only two persons to have held f ...

and

James Baker James Addison Baker III (born April 28, 1930) is an American attorney, diplomat and statesman. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 10th White House chief of staff and 67th United States secretary ...

. He helped Baker plan the

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

Peace Conference of October 1991. In June 1993, Miller was appointed Deputy Special Middle East Coordinator. For the next seven years, he worked as part of a small interagency team where he helped structure the U.S. role in Arab–Israeli negotiations through the Oslo process, multilateral Arab–Israeli economic summits, the Israeli–Jordanian peace treaty, and final status negotiations between Israel and Syria and between Israel and the Palestinians at

Camp David Camp David is a country retreat for the president of the United States. It lies in the wooded hills of Catoctin Mountain Park, in Frederick County, Maryland, near the towns of Thurmont, Maryland, Thurmont and Emmitsburg, Maryland, Emmitsburg, a ...

in July 2000. Miller continued work on Arab–Israeli issues in the

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

administration, serving as the senior advisor on Arab–Israeli negotiations in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs to Secretary of State

Colin Powell Colin Luther Powell ( ; – ) was an Americans, American diplomat, and army officer who was the 65th United States secretary of state from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African-American to hold the office. He was the 15th National Security ...

. He resigned from the Department of State in January 2003 to become president of Seeds of Peace.

After government

In January 2006, Miller became a Public Policy Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, where he planned and participated in programs on the Middle East and Arab–Israeli issues. In 2008, he completed his fourth book, ''The Much Too Promised Land: America's Elusive Search for Arab–Israeli Peace'', an insider's look based on 160 interviews with former presidents, secretaries of state, Arabs, and Israelis, American Jews, Arabs, and evangelical Christians on why America succeeded and failed in Arab–Israeli diplomacy over the past 40 years.

Media and public speaking

Throughout his career, Miller has made frequent media and speaking appearances as an expert on Arab–Israeli and Middle Eastern issues, including on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

Fox News The Fox News Channel (FNC), commonly known as Fox News, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conservatism in the United States, conservative List of news television channels, news and political commentary Television stati ...

, the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

, the

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

, and

Al Jazeera Al Jazeera Media Network (AJMN; , ) is a private-media conglomerate headquartered in Wadi Al Sail, Doha, funded in part by the government of Qatar. The network's flagship channels include Al Jazeera Arabic and Al Jazeera English, which pro ...

Awards

Miller has received the Department of State's Distinguished, Meritorious and Superior Honor Awards. In 1998 he was on the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum's Governing Council. In 2005, he was awarded the

Ellis Island Medal of Honor The Ellis Island Medal of Honor is an American award founded by the Ellis Island Honors Society (EIHS) (formerly known as the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations (NECO)), which is presented annually to American citizens, both native-born ...

Personal life

Miller lives with his wife, Lindsay. They have two adult children, Jenny and Danny. Danny Miller is the founder of the Psychedelic Society of Brooklyn.

Bibliography

Books

* ''Search for Security: Saudi Arabian Oil and American Foreign Policy, 1939–1949'' (Paperback, University of North Carolina Press, 1991) * ''PLO: Politics of Survival'' (Paperback, Praeger Press, 1983) * ''The Arab States and the Palestine Question: Between Ideology and Self-Interest'' (Paperback, Praeger Press, 1986) * ''The Much Too Promised Land: America’s Elusive Search for Arab-Israeli Peace'' (Hardcover, Bantam Books, 2008) * ''The End of Greatness: Why America Can't Have (and Doesn't Want) Another Great President'' (Hardcover, Palgrave Macmillan, 2014)

Articles

* "The Abandonment: How the Bush Administration Left Israelis and Palestinians to Their Fate" * "Annapolis Is Just the First Step" * "West Bank First: It Won't Work" * "For Israel and Hamas, a Case for Accommodation" * "The Arab-Israeli conflict: Toward an Equitable and Durable Solution" * "Israel's Lawyer"

References

External links

Official site for Aaron David Miller's book ''The Much Too Promised Land'' and his blog

The Woodrow Wilson Center for International Studies

Seeds of Peace

Official site for the book ''Inheriting the Holy Land''

Video (with mp3 available) interviews/discussions involving Miller
on Bloggingheads.tv * {{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Aaron David American non-fiction writers Living people 20th-century American Jews Seeds of Peace University of Michigan College of Literature, Science, and the Arts alumni People from Shaker Heights, Ohio Ratner family 21st-century American Jews Year of birth missing (living people)