WASHINGTON, Sept. 12, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The Cohen Group announces that Ambassador Stuart E. Jones, a career diplomat with extensive experience in the Middle East, has joined the firm as a Vice President.  Ambassador Jones will lead the firm's robust Middle East practice, which supports international clients throughout the region.  

"Stu Jones is a highly respected career diplomat, who has served in several of the toughest jobs in the State Department; he is an exciting addition to our firm," says former Secretary of Defense Bill Cohen, the Chairman and CEO of The Cohen Group.

Prior to joining The Cohen Group, most recently served as the Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, the State Department's senior diplomat for the Middle East.  He accompanied the President to the historic Riyadh Summit in May and on his first visit to Israel.  As a senior aide to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Ambassador Jones has traveled broadly in the region in support of the Secretary's agenda.  He retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in August, 2017.

Prior to his return to Washington to lead the Middle East Bureau, Ambassador Jones served as the U.S. Ambassador to Iraq from 2014 - 16, a period of intense conflict and stabilization and also rejuvenation of the US-Iraqi relationship.  From 2011 – 14, he served as the U.S. Ambassador to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, where he oversaw a rapid expansion of US security and development assistance to one of the United States' closest regional partners, in response to the pressures created by the Syrian civil war. 

Previous tours include: Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Iraq from 2010 to 2011; Deputy Assistant Secretary for European Affairs, with responsibility for the European Union and the Balkans (2008 – 10) Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy in Cairo (2005 – 08).  Ambassador Jones was also Country Director for Iraq on President George W. Bush's National Security Council from 2004 to 2005 and Governorate Coordinator in Al Anbar Province Iraq, under the Coalition Provisional Authority in 2004.  Ambassador Jones spent two tours in Turkey, as Political Counselor in the Embassy in Ankara and also as Principal Officer at the U.S. Consulate in Adana, 1997 – 2002.  He was also Special Assistant to the U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Secretary Madeleine Albright. 

A native of Philadelphia, Ambassador Jones is a graduate of Duke University, and the University of Pennsylvania Law School.  He is married to Barbara L. Jones, also a State Department official, and they have three children.

Ambassador Jones joins a number of senior leaders at The Cohen Group with deep experience in the Middle East and around the world.  In addition to Secretary Cohen, these leaders include: 

• General Joseph Ralston, former NATO Supreme Allied Commander and Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
• Ambassador Marc Grossman, former US Ambassador to Turkey, former Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, and former US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan
• Ambassador Nicholas Burns, former Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs and US Ambassador to NATO and Greece
• Admiral James Loy, former Deputy Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and Commandant of the US Coast Guard
• Ambassador Jeff Davidow, former Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs and U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, Venezuela, and Zambia
• Lord George Robertson, former NATO Secretary General and Defense Minister of the United Kingdom
• General Paul Kern, former Commander of the Army Materiel Command and the Senior Adviser for Army Research, Development and Acquisition
• Lt. General Joe Yakovac, former Director of the Army Acquisition Corps and Military Deputy to the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology
• Lt. General Harry Raduege, former Director of the Defense Information Systems Agency and Commander of the Joint Task Force Global Network Operations
• William Zarit, current Chairman of AmCham China, former Minister for Commercial Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in China, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce for International Operations, and former Regional Director for East Asia at the U.S. Department of Commerce

About The Cohen Group:

Formed in 2001, The Cohen Group is comprised of more than 60 professionals with many decades of combined experience working in top-level positions in Congress, the White House, the State Department, the Defense Department, the Department of Homeland Security, the intelligence community, other federal agencies, and in European and Asian governments, international organizations and the private sector.

With offices in Washington, London, Beijing, Tianjin, and New Delhi, The Cohen Group provides its clients the insights and intelligence needed to better understand and shape the business, political, legal, regulatory, and media environments in which they operate. This includes both developing strategic business plans to help clients achieve their objectives, and actively participating with clients in the execution of those plans. The Cohen Group practice groups include Aerospace & Defense; Homeland Security; Middle East; China; India; Telecommunications and Information Technology; Energy & Resources; Transportation & Logistics; Health Care & Life Sciences; Financial Services & Investment; and Real Estate, serving clients in North America, East Asia, South Asia, Europe, Russia, Australia, Africa and Latin America.

The Cohen Group also has a strong strategic partnership with DLA Piper, an international law firm with over 4,200 lawyers and 71 offices in 30 countries throughout the world.

SOURCE The Cohen Group

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