A Seasoned Diplomat Steps In: Who Is Julie Stufft, The Potential U.S. Ambassador to Kazakhstan?

An American from Ohio — impeccable reputation, traditional values, commercial focus, and more. Orda.kz explores who might represent the U.S. in Kazakhstan.

Julie Stufft, a career diplomat from Ohio who grew up on a small farm in Wayne County, is currently the nominee for the post of U.S. Ambassador to Kazakhstan. 

In her opening remarks following her nomination, Stufft began by thanking her family: her husband Tim, whom she warmly referred to as “a greatest diplomat” in her family, their son Oliver, daughters Amelia and Nora, and her parents, Hal and Nancy Leach.

We move a lot, and our children have a different life than we had growing up in one small town like I did my entire life. And you expose yourself to all different kinds of places and dangers that perhaps we wouldn't see in the United States, but this is something that's great about it she once said while stationed in Moldova.

Constructively Disagreeing

In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Stufft became a prominent figure in American foreign policy. As a special assistant to President Trump at the White House, she represented the State Department and firmly defended the agency’s right to shape its own travel guidance — even in the face of pushback from powerful industry groups and economic advisers within the administration.

Stufft consistently advocated for travel restrictions to protect U.S. citizens abroad. Despite resistance, her insistence was later validated as the right call.

Her principled stand earned her respect within diplomatic and policy circles.

A Challenging Mission

She speaks Russian, Romanian, French, and Polish and holds degrees from Duke University, Case Western Reserve University, and the prestigious MIT Seminar XXI program.

Her résumé includes serving as Deputy Chief of Mission in the U.S. Embassies in Moldova and Djibouti, a role on the National Security Council, and prior diplomatic assignments in Russia, Ethiopia, and Poland. She also worked in the State Department Operations Center, which coordinates U.S. foreign policy responses in crisis situations.

“Welcome to The U.S.”

In August 2024, Julie Stufft expressed concern about the overburdened green card system. The US had a huge backlog of green cards due to the pandemic and previous Trump-era restrictions. Biden lifted one of the bans, but the backlog was growing rapidly, with tens of thousands of people waiting for interviews.

Priority was given to spouses and children of US citizens.

In 2023, Stufft oversaw the U.S. visa operations hub in India, which achieved a historic milestone — issuing over one million visas in a single year.

There are record-setting numbers this year for workers, crew members, and students applying in India to come to the United States. We've really made a huge effort to concentrate on the demand coming out of India  — and we've had great results. We specifically made sure that we saw the students who were applying coming out of India. India is now the largest source country for foreign students in the United States (...) We've also had a lot of cases where the interview was waived, so no interview for Indian travellers who have previously travelled and are now going back to the US. We've opened up other embassies for Indian Travellers who can't get an appointment to go if needed, and that's not what we're seeking, that's not ideal, but we want to make sure that Indian Travellers can have that application and we were able to do it this year. We need to bring the wait time down in a few places in India (...) you know, wait times of 6-8-12 months are not what we need and not indicative of how we view India,she said. 

Stufft received a prestigious award for her active work in this direction. Morgan O’Brien, a career diplomat at the US Department of State, a representative for interaction with the private sector in the Bureau of Consular Affairs, publicly praised her work and the achievements under her direction.

In 2024, Stufft worked to expand and streamline the U.S. visa process in China for travelers and students.

Cooperation with Moldova

In 2015, while serving in Moldova as Deputy Chief of Mission, Julie Stufft participated in the closing ceremony of the seminar “Preventing and Combating Sexual Violence,” organized by the NGO La Strada.

Moldovan police, prosecutors, and the criminal justice sector, must understand the realities of rape and sexual assault, with society as a whole, and they must diligently investigate and prosecute the purveyors of these crimes, while supporting the victim’s rights.

She also gave an interview to a local media outlet, where she specifically addressed women’s status in society:

There have been moments when I and I know many of my female colleagues are in a meeting or a large group with many country representatives and you slowly realize that you're the only female in the room (...) The only way that we can change our perception that estranged women to have leadership roles is to have more women in leadership roles (...) We've seen this over and over again in the US, where something seems impossible, for example, electing an African American president.

In 2016, she made a statement about regional challenges in Moldova, warning that these issues would only intensify over time — unless efforts were consolidated, including with the United States.

Later that year, she attended the closing ceremony of Falcon Medic, a two-week joint medical training exercise between the Moldovan Armed Forces and the North Carolina National Guard.

The United States remains committed to assisting Moldova to enhance its combat medical capabilities.  Exercise Falcon Medic and the medical supplies donation are but two more examples of the positive impact of the U.S.-Moldovan military partnership, a relationship that goes back over 20 years.

Under her leadership, a U.S.-funded project to combat human and drug trafficking was launched in Moldova, with $400,000 allocated to the initiative. This followed the Moldovan government's official adoption of the National Strategy for Preventing and Combating Human Trafficking for 2017–2022, along with an action plan for 2017–2019.

There is little public information available about Stufft’s work in Djibouti. However, one of her quotes suggests she had a strong personal preference for Moldova:

Business Cooperation

Stufft is also likely to promote women’s rights — a challenge in Kazakhstan — and may seek to ease visa procedures. She has clearly outlined what the United States values most.

She also stressed the importance of developing and utilizing the investment potential of both countries:

If confirmed, I will work with the Department’s Bureau of Economic, Energy, and Business Affairs, the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, U.S. EXIM Bank, and the private sector, to make the United States more prosperous by fostering deeper bilateral economic ties, including through U.S. investment in energy, technology, and infrastructure.

Julie Stufft acknowledges that Kazakhstan’s neighbors, Russia and China, are significant geopolitical forces that aim to keep the country within their sphere of influence.

The United States benefits from a Kazakhstan that is stable, independent, and prosperous. Kazakhstan is a solid partner to the United States in other areas, including improving export controls to curb Russian sanctions avoidance and making essential contributions to the C5+1 diplomatic platform.

Julie Stufft has pledged to help Kazakhstan find alternative export routes. However, what she will actually accomplish — and what she brings to the role if confirmed — remains to be seen.

Her predecessor, Daniel Rosenblum, stepped down voluntarily after nearly 28 years of service in the U.S. State Department. He officially informed the government of Kazakhstan of his intention to leave the post on November 26, 2024. His departure was scheduled for January 20, 2025, citing retirement as the reason.

Due to his extended absence from the United States, concerns had been raised.

Original Author: Alexandra Mokhireva