Roger Carstens
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Roger Carstens is an American diplomat and retired Army Special Forces Lieutenant Colonel. He served as the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs (SPEHA) at the U.S. Department of State from 2020 to 2025, leading negotiations with adversarial regimes and groups like the Taliban, Syria’s Assad regime, and Russia, securing the release of over 65 American hostages and wrongful detainees, including Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan, and Brittney Griner.
A 1986 West Point graduate, he earned master's degrees from the Naval War College and St. John's College. Carstens served in conflicts like the Iraq War and Afghanistan, earning the 2023 Robert A. Levinson Excellence in Government Service Award. Now a Distinguished Senior Fellow at the McCain Institute's John McCain Freedom for Political Prisoners Initiative, he advises on hostage recovery and speaks on negotiation and leadership. He is also a member of the Advisory Board of Spirit of America.
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