vigdor Lieberman (Hebrew: אֲבִיגְדוֹר לִיבֶּרְמָן‎, IPA: [aviɡˈdor ˈliberman], About this sound(audio) (help·info), Russian: Эве́т Льво́вич Ли́берман, [ɪˈvɛt lʲˈvovɪt͡ɕ ˈlʲɪbʲɪrmɐn], 5 July 1958)[1] is a Soviet-born Israeli politician who served as the Defense Minister of Israel from 2016 to 2018; on 14 November 2018, he resigned because of a ceasefire in Gaza which he characterized as "surrendering to terror."[2] He served as Israel's Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2009 to 2012, and again from 2013 to 2015. He has also served as member of the Knesset and as Deputy Prime Minister of Israel.

He is the founder and leader of the secular nationalist Yisrael Beiteinu (Israel Our Home) party, whose electoral base has initially consisted overwhelmingly of Russian-speaking immigrants from the former Soviet Union, but later attracted broader support. Lieberman has stated his opposition to forming a coalition with religious parties and refused to join Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition in April 2019.[3] As a result of the arrival in Israel during the 1990s of about one million Russian-speaking immigrants, Yisrael Beiteinu has regularly played the "king-maker" role in Israel's coalition governments.[4]

Lieberman entered the Knesset in 1999, and has served in numerous roles in the government, including as Minister of National Infrastructure, Minister of Transportation, Minister of Strategic Affairs, Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign Affairs Minister, and Minister of Defense.