Brian Hook
US diplomat who led the State Department's Iran Action Group and later became vice chairman of Cerberus Global Investments
| Brian Hook
| |
|---|---|
| Image |  Official State Department photograph, 16 September 2020 |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Diplomat; lawyer; vice chairman, Cerberus Global Investments |
| Known for | Special Representative for Iran (2018–2020); director of the State Department Policy Planning Staff (2017–2018); head of the Iran Action Group |
Brian H. Hook is an American diplomat and lawyer who served as the United States Special Representative for Iran and senior policy adviser to the secretary of state from 1 August 2018 to 9 November 2020, and who led the State Department's Iran Action Group from its creation in August 2018.[1][2] Before that appointment he was director of the Policy Planning Staff at the State Department, from 2017 to 2018.[1] In May 2021 he was appointed vice chairman of Cerberus Global Investments, an affiliate of Cerberus Capital Management; a Council on Foreign Relations event page dated 24 April 2026 still listed him in that role.[3][4][5]
Earlier career
The official State Department biography says that, before practising law, Hook was an adviser to Iowa Governor Terry Branstad and to Congressman James Leach, and that he practised corporate law at Hogan & Hartson in Washington from 1999 to 2003. In the administration of President George W. Bush he held senior posts including assistant secretary of state for international organizations; senior adviser to the US ambassador to the United Nations; special assistant to the president for policy in the White House chief of staff's office; and counsel in the Justice Department's Office of Legal Policy. From 2009 to 2017, the same biography says, he managed an international strategic consulting firm based in Washington, D.C. Cerberus, announcing his appointment in 2021, named that firm as Latitude, LLC, and said that Hook had also served in the administration of President George H. W. Bush.[1][3]
Special Representative for Iran and the Iran Action Group
Hook served as director of the Policy Planning Staff from 2017 to 2018. In remarks on 16 August 2018 announcing the creation of the Iran Action Group, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that Hook, who had held the policy-planning post since February 2017, would "lead the Iran Action Group with the formal title of Special Representative for Iran". Pompeo said that the group would direct, review and coordinate all Iran-related activity at the State Department and report to him.[2][1][6]
The official biography records the Special Representative term as 1 August 2018 to 9 November 2020.[1] On 6 August 2020 Pompeo issued a statement saying that Hook had "decided to step down" as Special Representative for Iran and senior adviser to the secretary, that he had been Pompeo's "point person on Iran for over two years", and that he had "successfully negotiated with the Iranians the release of Michael White and Xiyue Wang from prison". Pompeo said that, after a transition period with Hook, Elliott Abrams would assume the position of Special Representative for Iran, in addition to his responsibilities as Special Representative for Venezuela.[7]
Cerberus has written that Hook "was a key official on the team that negotiated" the Abraham Accords between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco, and that he "led the creation of the Free and Open Indo-Pacific strategy and the deepening of ties between the United States and India". Those claims appear in the firm's announcement and leadership biography; they are not stated on the official State Department biography opened for this page.[3][4]
Private sector after 2020
On 24 May 2021 Cerberus Capital Management announced Hook's appointment as vice chairman of Cerberus Global Investments, LLC, "an affiliate of Cerberus focused on international business and investment strategies". The firm's leadership page still listed him in that role when retrieved in November 2026.[3][4]
On 8 November 2024 Jewish Insider reported that "some pro-Israel foreign policy voices" had been "reassured by recent news reports" that Hook was "expected to lead the transition team at the State Department" after Donald Trump's election. The article identified him as vice chairman of Cerberus Global Investments. It also reported that Hook had told CNN he had no comment on whether he was helping with the transition, and that a person familiar with the process, speaking anonymously, had said it was "premature to assume Hook had been tapped for the position" until a secretary of state was nominated.[8] This page does not treat that transition role as a confirmed appointment.
Positions
| Dates | Organisation | Role | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Before law practice (dates not given) | Office of the Governor of Iowa; office of Congressman James Leach | Adviser | [1] |
| 1999–2003 | Hogan & Hartson | Corporate lawyer, Washington | [1] |
| George W. Bush administration (dates not itemised on the official biography) | State Department; White House; Department of Justice | Assistant secretary of state for international organizations; senior adviser to the US ambassador to the United Nations; special assistant to the president for policy; counsel, Office of Legal Policy | [1] |
| 2009–2017 | International strategic consulting firm in Washington (named Latitude, LLC, by Cerberus) | Manager (Cerberus says founder and manager) | [1][3] |
| 2017–2018 (from February 2017, according to Pompeo) | U.S. Department of State | Director, Policy Planning Staff | [1][2] |
| 1 August 2018 – 9 November 2020 | U.S. Department of State | Special Representative for Iran and senior policy adviser to the secretary of state; lead of the Iran Action Group | [1][2] |
| From 24 May 2021 | Cerberus Global Investments, LLC | Vice chairman | [3][4] |
See also
External links
Notes
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 U.S. Department of State, Brian H. Hook, archived 2017–2021 biography, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Michael R. Pompeo, Remarks on the Creation of the Iran Action Group, U.S. Department of State, 16 August 2018, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Cerberus Capital Management, Brian H. Hook Appointed Vice Chairman of Cerberus Global Investments, 24 May 2021, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Cerberus Capital Management, Brian Hook, leadership biography, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ Council on Foreign Relations, U.S. Policy Options in the War With Iran, event page dated 24 April 2026, listing Brian Hook as vice chairman, Cerberus Global Investments, and former Special Representative for Iran (2018–20), accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ U.S. Department of State, Briefing on the Creation of the Iran Action Group, 16 August 2018, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ Michael R. Pompeo, On the Departure of Brian Hook, U.S. Department of State, 6 August 2020, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ Matthew Kassel, Pro-Israel leaders encouraged by Brian Hook's role on State Department transition team, Jewish Insider, 8 November 2024, accessed 11 November 2026.