New Member of Trump’s Iran Negotiating Team Comes From Notoriously Hawkish Think Tank

Amid stalled peace talks and a US blockade on Iranian ports, the Trump administration has added a new member to its negotiating team who comes from the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, a notoriously hawkish think tank that has been lobbying for aggressive action against the Islamic Republic for many years.

Nick Stewart, the head of the FDD’s lobbying arm, has joined the office of US envoy Steve Witkoff, journalist Alex Marquardt first reported on his Substack on Friday. The White House confirmed the appointment to Marquardt, calling Stewart a “sharp, seasoned policy expert who is a valuable asset to Special Envoy Steve Witkoff’s talented team.”

Stewart worked in the State Department during the first Trump administration under then-US Special Representative for Iran Brian Hook, who oversaw and increasing economic sanctions regime following the US withdrawal from the JCPOA in 2018, known as the Iran nuclear deal.