[4] He is a Non-Resident Fellow in Middle East Politics and Media at the TRENDS Research and Advisory center in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

[5] He is also on the Board of Advisors of the International Center for the Study of Violent Extremism (ICSVE)[6] IDC (In Defense of Christians)[7] and the Philos Project.

[13] Fernandez has also served in senior US embassy positions, as Counselor for Public Affairs, in Kabul, Amman, Guatemala City, and Damascus.

Earlier in his career, he served at the US Embassy in Kuwait (Public Affairs Officer), Managua (Press Attache and Spokesman), Santo Domingo (Director of the Dominican American Cultural Institute, ICDA), and Abu Dhabi.

In an Arabic-language interview on Al-Jazeera on October 21, 2006, Fernandez made statements translated as, "I think there is great room for strong criticism, because without doubt, there was arrogance and stupidity by the United States in Iraq.

"[15] Similarly, US Ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad said in English days before Fernandez's comments: "It's important to recognize that mistakes have been made over the last few years.