U.S. foreign policy veteran Ross moves to White House

By Ross Colvin

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Foreign policy veteran Dennis Ross, who has been the Obama administration's pointman on Iran, has a new job -- to oversee policy in several of the world's hot spots, the White House said on Thursday.

After only a few months as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's "Iran czar," Ross is moving to the White House, raising speculation about tensions within President Barack Obama's foreign policy team.

It was unclear what impact Ross's move would have on Obama's policy of reaching out to Tehran, which has been overshadowed by sharp U.S. criticism of the Iranian government's violent crackdown on demonstrators protesting against the results of the June 12 presidential election.

Officials offered no detailed explanation for Ross's move from the State Department to the White House National Security Council, where his mandate appears to be considerably broader.

He will become a special assistant to the president and an NSC senior director with overall responsibility for a region that includes the Middle East, the Gulf, Afghanistan, Pakistan and South Asia, said Mike Hammer, and NSC spokesman.

Although a Soviet expert by training, Ross is best known for spearheading President Bill Clinton's efforts to broker peace agreements between Israel and the Palestinians and between Israel and Syria.

Ross's move appears to have ruffled some feathers, particularly among NSC officials who fear he may encroach on their turf, as well as in the office of George Mitchell, the U.S. special envoy for Middle East peace.

"There was resistance from the NSC's Middle East guys and from Mitchell's office," said a former State Department official with experience in the Middle East. "Those are the people who most see their equities at risk."

Ross may have felt constrained at the State Department with Mitchell handling Middle East peace and veteran diplomat Richard Holbrooke overseeing policy toward Afghanistan and Pakistan, said one official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

"Looking around at State, with Holbrooke and Mitchell, he was fenced in too much," said the official, adding that Ross "could augment his power and influence" at the White House.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs played down suggestions of tensions in the national security team. "I don't think anybody should believe this will supersede the important work the envoys are doing on the ground in these places," he said.

(Additional reporting by Arshad Mohammed)