UNITED STATES AMBASSADOR TO AFGHANISTAN

This is a list of United States ambassadors to Afghanistan. Prior to 1948, Afghanistan was not considered important enough to have a full ambassador, so a Minister Plenipotentiary was sent instead. From 1979 to 1989, Afghanistan did not have an official ambassador and was instead served by a lower-ranking chargé d’affaires. From 1981 to 2002, there was no official embassy in Kabul due to internal security problems eventually including the Taliban government.

★ William H. Hornibrook (1935–1936) - Minister Plenipotentiary

★ Louis G. Dreyfus, Jr. (1940–1942) - Minister Plenipotentiary

★ Cornelius Van Hemert Engert (1942–1945) - Minister Plenipotentiary

★ Ely E. Palmer (1945–1948) - Minister Plenipotentiary

★ Louis G. Dreyfus, Jr. (1949–1951) - ''First formal ambassador''

★ George Robert Merrell (1951–1952)

★ Angus I. Ward (1952–1956)

★ Sheldon T. Mills (1956–1959)

★ Henry A. Byroade (1959–1962)

★ John M. Steeves (1962–1966)

★ Robert G. Neumann (1966–1973)

★ Theodore L. Eliot, Jr. (1973–1978)

★ Adolph Dubs (1978–1979) - ''Killed while in office.''
Following the death of Mr. Dubs, there were no formal Ambassadors from the United States until after the War in Afghanistan.

★ J. Bruce Amstutz (1979–1980) - ''US Deputy Chief of Mission, then chargé d’affaires''

★ Hawthorne Q. Mills (1980–1982) - ''chargé d’affaires''

★ Archer K. Blood - ''appointed in 1982, but rejected by Afghanistan government''

★ Charles F. Dunbar - (1982–1983) - ''chargé d’affaires''

★ Edward Hurwitz (1983–1986) - ''chargé d’affaires''

★ James Maurice Elaum (1986–??) - ''chargé d’affaires (–1988?)''

★ Jon D. Glassman (??–1989) ''chargé d’affaires (1988?–) - embassy closed after Soviet Union troop withdrawal and descreased stability''
The US government also had a chargé d’affaires to the Afgan Northern Alliance government, beginning in 1989.

★ Peter Tomsen (1989–1992) - ''chargé d’affaires to Northern Alliance, new post''
Post-war ambassadors:

★ James F. Dobbins (2001) - ''Special US Ambassador to oversee reopening of embassy, not official ambassador''

★ Ryan C. Crocker (2001-2002) - ''chargé d’affaires before official ambassador could be chosen''

★ Robert Finn (2002–2003)

★ Zalmay Khalilzad (2003–2005)

★ Ronald E. Neumann (2005–2007)

★ William B. Wood (2007-present)

Contents

See Also

See Also

★ United States-Afghanistan relations