Agricultural Affairs
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is represented in more than 100 offices around the globe, covering approximately 180 countries through its Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS). FAS staff in Israel are headquartered in Tel Aviv and are the eyes, ears, and voice for U.S. agriculture in Israel. In Israel, FAS works to identify problems, provide practical solutions, and work to advance opportunities for U.S. agriculture and to support U.S. foreign policy. This is done through working with foreign governments, international organizations, and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to establish international standards and rules to improve accountability and predictability for agricultural trade.
FAS also partners with more than 70 cooperator groups representing a cross-section of the U.S. food and agricultural industry to help U.S. exporters develop and maintain their presence in the Israeli market.
FAS’ network of global contacts and long-standing relationships with international groups contribute to the agency’s unique data collection for public reporting. Through these reports, FAS provides objective information on foreign market conditions, prepares production forecasts, assesses export opportunities, and tracks changes in policies affecting U.S. agricultural exports and imports.
For more information on USDA go to: FAS homepage
Contact Information:
Email: Agtelaviv@usda.gov
Tel: +972-3-519-8620
Consular Affairs
The Embassy’s Consular Sections in Jerusalem and Branch Office Tel Aviv are made up of the American Citizen Services and the Visa Units. The American Citizen Services unit assists U.S. citizens living abroad by accepting passport applications, issuing emergency passports, reports of birth and death abroad, notarials, and providing emergency services for U.S. citizens in distress. The Visa Units provide services to those seeking to enter the United States for a temporary period with a U.S. nonimmigrant visa for general business, tourism, study, exchange, temporary work, and many other reasons. The Visa Unit also adjudicates immigrant visas for those seeking to take up indefinite or permanent residence in the United States.
U.S. Military Group
The U.S. Military Group is a joint DoW activity within U.S. Embassy Jerusalem led by the Senior Defense Official (SDO) with responsibilities delegated to the Military Group Chief. It is comprised of U.S. military, DoW civilian, and locally employed staff responsible for advancing U.S. bilateral security and defense policy objectives. The organization consists of: Security Cooperation, Defense Cooperation in Armaments, and Support sections.
We do this by actively engaging with the Israeli Defense Forces, ministries and agencies at all levels in order to strengthen the bilateral security relationship between the United States and Israel, and to increase interoperability between Israel and other allies.
Economic Section
The Embassy’s Economic Section is responsible for monitoring and maintaining the full range of economic relations between the United States, Israel, and the Palestinian Territories. It provides U.S government agencies in Washington DC and other U.S. Embassies abroad accurate and timely information regarding current economic and financial developments in Israel and seeks to explain U.S. economic policy to Israeli audiences. The Economic section supports visiting U.S. delegations and maintains regular contact with a variety of Israeli government institutions, think tanks, civil society organizations and business groups. Headed by the Economic Counselor, the section covers such diverse issues as trade policy, intellectual property right protection, traditional and emerging energy sources, economic development of minority groups within Israel, Israel’s macroeconomic and financial sector developments, anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism finance efforts, and economic aspects of the Abraham Accords.
U.S. Commercial Service
The U.S. Commercial Service is the trade promotion arm of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration. The U.S. Commercial Service Israel supports U.S. companies seeking to export goods and services to the Israeli market, while the U.S. Commercial Service West Bank assists U.S. firms interested in entering the Palestinian Territories. Both offices offer a wide range of services and programs to help U.S. businesses succeed abroad. They also promote inward investment into the United States through the SelectUSA program.
Israel’s innovative and diverse economy presents strong opportunities for U.S. exporters across multiple sectors. Its pro-American business environment and familiarity with U.S. business practices make it an accessible and attractive market. Many U.S. companies are already operating successfully in both Israel and the Palestinian Territories.
Take advantage of these opportunities with the support of the U.S. Commercial Service!
- Market Overview & Opportunities
- Free Trade Agreement
- Invoice of Declaration – Certificate of Origin
- Services for U.S. Companies
- How to Export
- Annual SelectUSA Investment Summit
Political Section
The Embassy’s Political Section is responsible for monitoring and maintaining the full range of political relations between the United States, Israel, and the Palestinian Territories. It provides U.S. government agencies in Washington D.C. and other U.S. Embassies abroad accurate and timely information regarding current political developments and seeks to explain U.S. policy to foreign audiences. The Political Section supports visiting U.S. delegations and maintains regular contact with a variety of politicians, think tanks, and civil society organizations. Headed by the Political Counselor, the section covers such diverse issues as internal politics, external relations, implementation of Abraham Accords, political-military affairs, counter-terrorism, religious freedom, and human rights.
Public Diplomacy
The Public Diplomacy Section works to increase mutual understanding of the United States among the Israeli and Palestinian publics and strengthen U.S. cultural, academic, and social ties with Israel and the Palestinian Territories. The U.S. Embassy’s Public Diplomacy Section has three main components:
The Press Section is the point of contact for Israeli, Palestinian, and resident foreign media on matters of U.S. government policy worldwide, but especially regarding Israel and the Palestinian Territories. The Press Section plays a major role in official visits by U.S. government officials to Israel and the Palestinian Territories. This includes making available official transcripts of public addresses, Embassy Press Releases, briefings, and press conferences taking place during these visits. For information about U.S. policy, or to search for archived materials, please visit the State Department’s website.
Public Engagement teams advance U.S. foreign policy through “people-to-people” programs that strengthen the U.S. relationships with Israel and the Palestinian Territories; foster mutual understanding among Americans, Israelis, and Palestinians; and bolster U.S.-led security and peacebuilding efforts in the region. Public diplomacy programs comprise a rich variety of educational and cultural initiatives spanning themes such as U.S. policy; U.S.-Israeli and U.S.-Palestinian relations; American history, values, government, business, and society; youth leadership; entrepreneurship; economic prosperity; arts and culture; science and technology; sports diplomacy; and more.
Activities include educational, academic, and professional exchanges; English language skills building; advising on studying in the United States; cultural performances and exhibitions; and speaker programs, workshops, conferences, roundtables, and a wide range of other public outreach initiatives. Key audiences include young entrepreneurs, students, future leaders, and current leading experts, scholars, policy makers, and opinion influencers in academia, think tanks, and government. We also maintain extensive networks with alumni of our programs.
American Spaces are U.S. Embassy-affiliated educational and cultural spaces that seek to connect a broad range of Israelis and Palestinians to the values that underpin American society—democracy, civic engagement, and innovation. American Spaces prioritize engagement with students and young professionals ages 15 to 35 through a wide variety of programming and via strategic partners. Activities enable participants to develop skills in such areas as entrepreneurship, leadership, STEM, and English language and encourage them to take part in constructive dialogue and identify solutions to shared challenges, all while fostering understanding of U.S. policy, values, and culture. Read more about America Hub Israel and our American Spaces in East Jerusalem and the Palestinian Territories..
U.S. Department of Energy
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) opened its office at the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem in October 2020. The mission of the U.S. DOE is to ensure America’s security and prosperity by addressing its energy, environmental, and nuclear challenges through transformative science and technology solutions. DOE’s Jerusalem Office works closely with the government of Israel on all sectors of energy and has several long-term collaborative efforts on cyber, nuclear security and basic science.
The DOE Attaché is the representative of the Department of Energy, advises the Ambassador on energy issues, and provides reach back to the technical expertise and capabilities within DOE Program Offices and across the Energy Department’s 17 National Laboratories.
One of the flagships of the U.S.-Israel cooperation is under an agreement managed by the Binational Industrial Research and Development (BIRD) Foundation. The “BIRD Energy” program and the “Energy Center” are working to develop innovation on a range of clean energy technologies, including renewable energy, energy efficiency, natural gas, and energy-water nexus. To learn more about the programs, please visit BIRD’s website: https://www.birdf.com/
For more information about DOE and to learn about the different projects that DOE is involved in, please visit DOE’s website: http://energy.gov/
Contact the DOE Israel Office: +972 (0)3-698-2517