Ambassadors and Chiefs of Mission
- William H. Hornibrook – Political appointee
- Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: January 22, 1935
- Presented credentials: May 4, 1935
- Terminated mission: Left Tehran March 16, 1936
Note: The names of the chargés heading the Afghanistan mission between Hornibrook’s departure in 1936 and the arrival of Dreyfus in 1941 have not been recorded.
- Louis G. Dreyfus, Jr. – Career FSO
- Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: February 16, 1940
- Presented credentials: May 19, 1941
- Terminated mission: Superseded by establishment of legation in Kabul, July 25, 1942
Note: Legation Kabul was opened June 6, 1942 with Charles W. Thayer as Chargé d’Affaires ad interim.
- Cornelius Van Hemert Engert – Career FSO
- Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: May 2, 1942
- Presented credentials: July 2, 1942
- Terminated mission: Left post August 17, 1945
- Ely E. Palmer – Career FSO
- Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: February 9, 1945
- Presented credentials: December 6, 1945
- Terminated mission: Promoted to Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Note: During Palmer’s tenure as envoy, the Legation was elevated to Embassy status on June 5, 1948, when Palmer presented his credentials to the Afghan government.
- Ely E. Palmer – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: May 6, 1948
- Presented credentials: June 5, 1948
- Terminated mission: Left post November 18, 1948
- Louis G. Dreyfus, Jr. – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: April 21, 1949
- Presented credentials: August 16, 1949
- Terminated mission: Left post January 19, 1951
- George Robert Merrell – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: April 19, 1951
- Presented credentials: June 28, 1951
- Terminated mission: Left post May 3, 1952
- Angus I. Ward – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: June 27, 1952
- Presented credentials: November 8, 1952
- Terminated mission: Left post March 3, 1956
- Sheldon T. Mills – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: March 28, 1956
- Presented credentials: May 6, 1956
- Terminated mission: Left post February 3, 1959
- Henry A. Byroade – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: January 29, 1959
- Presented credentials: March 21, 1959
- Terminated mission: Left post January 19, 1962
- John M. Steeves – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: February 7, 1962
- Presented credentials: March 20, 1962
- Terminated mission: Left post July 21, 1966
- Robert G. Neumann – Political appointee
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: November 3, 1966
- Presented credentials: February 19, 1967
- Terminated mission: Left post September 10, 1973
- Theodore L. Eliot, Jr. – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: September 20, 1973
- Presented credentials: November 21, 1973
- Terminated mission: Left post June 14, 1978
- Adolph Dubs – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: June 27, 1978
- Presented credentials: July 12, 1978
- Terminated mission: Assassinated at post February 14, 1979
- J. Bruce Amstutz – Career FSO
- Title: Chargé d’Affaires a.i.
- February 1979–February 1980
- Hawthorne Q. Mills – Career FSO
- Title: Chargé d’Affaires a.i.
- February 1980–January 1982
- Archer K. Blood – Career FSO
- Title: Chargé d’Affaires a.i.
- Nomination rejected by the Afghan government
- Charles F. Dunbar – Career FSO
- Title: Chargé d’Affaires a.i.
- 1982–1983
- Edward Hurwitz – Career FSO
- Title: Chargé d’Affaires a.i.
- 1983–1986
- James Maurice Ealum
- Title: Chargé d’Affaires a.i.
- March 1986–September 1987
- Jon D. Glassman
- Title: Chargé d’Affaires a.i.
- 1987–1989
Note: Peter Tomsen served as Special Envoy to Afghanistan (to the Northern Alliance) 1989–1992.
Note: The U.S. Embassy Kabul was closed in January 1989. The Embassy was reopened January 17, 2002.
- James F. Dobbins – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador (in charge of reestablishing U.S. Embassy)
- Served: December 2001–January 2002
- Ryan Crocker – Career FSO
- Title: Chargé d’Affaires a.i.
- Appointed: January 17, 2002
- Presented credentials: Unknown
- Terminated mission: April 3, 2002
- Robert Finn – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: March 21, 2002
- Presented credentials: April 3, 2002
- Terminated mission: Left post August 1, 2003
- Zalmay Khalilzad – Political appointee
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: November 17, 2003
- Presented credentials: November 28, 2003
- Terminated mission: Left post June 20, 2005
- Ronald E. Neumann – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: June 27, 2005
- Presented credentials: August 1, 2005
- Terminated mission: Left post April 10, 2007
- William Braucher Wood – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: March 28, 2007
- Presented credentials: April 16, 2007
- Terminated mission: c. March 2009
- Karl Eikenberry – Political appointee
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: April 3, 2009
- Presented credentials: Unknown
- Terminated mission: July 25, 2011
- Ryan Crocker – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: July 7, 2009
- Presented credentials: July 25, 2011
- Terminated mission: July 13, 2012
- James B. Cunningham
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: August 2012, Sworn in as ambassador August 12, 2012.
- Presented credentials: August 13, 2012
- Terminated mission: Incumbent
Read more about this topic: United States Ambassador To Afghanistan
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