John Bass was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on September 28, 2017 as the U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan.

A career Senior Foreign Service officer, he served as U.S. Ambassador to Turkey from 2014 to 2017, Executive Secretary of the State Department from 2012 to 2014, and U.S. Ambassador to Georgia from 2009 to 2012. He began his diplomatic career in 1988 and has also served in positions in U.S. missions in Iraq, Italy, Belgium, and Chad.

In Washington, Ambassador Bass’s assignments have included service on Vice President Cheney’s staff, as Chief of Staff and advisor to Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott, as Director of the State Department’s Operations Center and in several assignments focused on European security issues. He has received numerous State Department performance awards.

The son of a public servant and a U.S. Air Force officer, Bass was born and raised in upstate New York. A graduate of Syracuse University, he speaks Italian and French. He is married to U.S. diplomat Holly Holzer Bass.

Mr. Sanzar Kakar is the Chairman of Afghanistan Holding Group, a professional services firm in Afghanistan employing over 300 employees serving 700 international clients for over a decade. Mr. Kakar graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelors of Science in Computer Science Engineering and from Warwick Business School with a Masters in Business Administration. He first worked for Merrill Lynch as a Technology Analyst, creating a link for automatic reporting to the New York Stock Exchange. He started in Afghanistan as an Investment Associate for Acap Partners, setting up a $20 million venture capital facility and sourcing over 300 new opportunities for consideration. Mr. Kakar then joined as the Executive Advisor to the Attorney General’s Office of Afghanistan on a U.S. Department of State program to reorganize the institution and set up a national paper and computer criminal case management system spanning 7 justice institutions.

Since 2009, Afghanistan Holding Group has provided professional business services to over 700 organizations across Afghanistan. Clients range from small companies, non-profits, and corporations to development institutions and government customers. Over 300 employees support clients step-by-step, providing assistance with licensing, visas, payroll, taxation, audit and procurement services. This powerful combination of education, experience and qualification uniquely places AHG to provide the highest level of service with unparalleled integrity, efficiency and accountability.

Mr. Kakar speaks English, Pashtu and Dari.