DUSHANBE, June 22, 2009, Asia-Plus — U.S. President Barack Obama has appointed new ambassador to Tajikistan and Georgia, Russia’s news agency Itar Tass reported on June 19.
On June 19, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate a number of individuals for key administration posts. President Obama, in particular, nominated Mr. Kenneth E. Gross for Ambassador to Tajikistan and Mr. John R. Bass for Ambassador to Georgia, Itar Tass said.
According to the Office of the Press Secretary, the White House, President Obama said, “I am grateful that these fine individuals will serve in my administration and I am confident that they will well represent our nation abroad and help strengthen our relationships within the international community. I look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead.”
Kenneth Gross currently serves as a Career Development Officer for senior-level officers in the Bureau of Human Resources at the Department of State. A career Senior Foreign Service Officer, he joined the Department in 1987. His previous overseas diplomatic assignments include Principal Officer at the U.S. regional office in Basrah, Iraq, Deputy Chief of Mission in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, and tours in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Kathmandu, Nepal, and Frankfurt, Germany. Mr. Gross’s Washington assignments include Director of the Middle East Partnership Initiative Office, aviation negotiator in the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs, and desk officer for Austria and Germany in the Bureau of European Affairs. Mr. Gross earned a B.A. from Auburn University, a J.D. from the University of Georgia School of Law, and a M.S. from the National War College.
