John T. Godfrey is an American diplomat and foreign policy advisor who has served as the U.S. ambassador to Sudan since 2022, the first confirmed ambassador to the country since 1995.

Education

Godfrey earned a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in political science from the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

and a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

in Middle East and North Africa studies from the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

Career

Godfrey began his career as an assistant to the

assistant secretary of state for near eastern affairs The Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs is the head of the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs within the United States Department of State. The Assistant Secretary guides the operation of the U.S. diplomatic establishment in variou ...

. He later served as political and economic chief in

Ashgabat Ashgabat or Asgabat ( tk, Aşgabat, ; fa, عشق‌آباد, translit='Ešqābād, formerly named Poltoratsk ( rus, Полтора́цк, p=pəltɐˈratsk) between 1919 and 1927), is the capital and the largest city of Turkmenistan. It lies ...

and as a political officer in

Damascus )), is an adjective which means "spacious". , motto = , image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg , image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg , seal_type = Seal , map_caption = , ...

. From 2007 to 2009, he served as a political and economic counselor at the U.S. embassy in

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to: Cities and other geographic units Greece *Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...

. In 2009 and 2010, he served as deputy political counselor for northern affairs at the

Embassy of the United States, Baghdad The Embassy of the United States of America in Baghdad is the diplomatic mission of the United States of America in the Republic of Iraq. Ambassador Alina Romanowski is currently the Chief of Mission. At , it is the largest embassy in the wo ...

. After serving as an arms control counselor at the

United Nations Office at Vienna The United Nations Office at Vienna (UNOV) is one of the four major office sites of the United Nations where numerous different UN agencies have a joint presence. The office complex is located in Vienna, the capital of Austria, and is part of the ...

, he was chief of staff for Deputy Secretary of State

William J. Burns William John Burns (October 19, 1861 – April 14, 1932) was an American private investigator and law enforcement official. He was known as "America's Sherlock Holmes" and earned fame for having conducted private investigations into a number of ...

. He later served in the U.S. embassy in

Riyadh Riyadh (, ar, الرياض, 'ar-Riyāḍ, lit.: 'The Gardens' Najdi pronunciation: ), formerly known as Hajr al-Yamamah, is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the R ...

. Since January 2021, Godfrey has served as acting coordinator for counterterrorism.

Ambassador to Sudan

On January 26, 2022, President Joe Biden nominated Godfrey to be the ambassador to

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

. Hearings on his nomination were held before the

Senate Foreign Relations Committee The United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations is a standing committee of the U.S. Senate charged with leading foreign-policy legislation and debate in the Senate. It is generally responsible for overseeing and funding foreign aid pro ...

on May 24, 2022. The committee favorably reported his nomination on June 9, 2022. On July 14, 2022, his nomination was confirmed by

voice vote In parliamentary procedure, a voice vote (from the Latin ''viva voce'', meaning "live voice") or acclamation is a voting method in deliberative assemblies (such as legislatures) in which a group vote is taken on a topic or motion by responding vo ...

. He was sworn into office on August 23, 2022, and he presented his credentials to Sudanese head of state

Abdel Fattah al-Burhan Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman al-Burhan ( ar, عبد الفتاح عبد الرحمن البرهان, Abd al-FattāḥʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-Burhān; born 11 July 1960) is a Sudanese politician and Sudanese Army general who is the ''de facto'' head ...

on September 1, 2022. Godfrey is the first diplomat to serve in a permanent role there since

Timothy M. Carney Timothy Michael Carney (born July 12, 1944) is a retired American diplomat and consultant. Carney served as a career Foreign Service Officer for 32 years, with assignments that included Vietnam and Cambodia as well as Lesotho and South Africa b ...

in 1996.

Personal life

Godfrey speaks

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Godfrey, John T. Year of birth missing (living people) Living people 21st-century American diplomats Ambassadors of the United States to Sudan United States Foreign Service personnel University of California, Los Angeles alumni University of Michigan alumni