Ambassador Roger Carstens

Ambassador Roger D. Carstens served as the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs (SPEHA) at the U.S. Department of State from 2020 to 2025. During his tenure, he orchestrated and led negotiations with the Taliban, Syria’s Assad Regime, Venezuela’s Maduro government, the People’s Republic of China, Russia, Belarus, and Foreign Terrorist Organizations such as Afghanistan’s Haqqani Network, Yemen’s Houthis, and Mali’s JNIM, returning over 65 American hostages and wrongful detainees during the Trump and Biden Administrations. He also prioritized supporting the families of those detained, partnering with them and keeping them informed of the work being done to bring their loved ones home.

Prior to assuming this role, Mr. Carstens was a Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. He previously served in Amman, Jordan, as the Country Director for a U.S.-based international nongovernmental organization (INGO) that provided humanitarian assistance to Syrian refugees and internally displaced persons. Prior positions include Senior Civilian Advisor on the Commander’s Advisory and Assistance Team (CAAT) in Afghanistan; Project Director for an INGO based in Somalia; Senior Fellow at the Center for a New American Security; and Special Assistant for Legislative Affairs in the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

Mr. Carstens is a retired Army Lieutenant Colonel who served in Special Forces and the 1st Ranger Battalion. He is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy and holds master’s degrees from the U.S. Naval War College and St. John’s College. Mr. Carstens is the recipient of the 2023 Robert A. Levinson Excellence in Government Service Award, was selected as a Distinguished Member of the Special Forces Regiment and received St. John’s College Alumni Association Award of Merit in 2024. He is a Member of the Board for both the Foley Foundation and Hostage U.S. and has been selected as a Distinguished Senior Fellow at the McCain Institute.

Sample Session Topics

The Art & Science of Negotiating: Lessons from the Frontlines of Global Crisis and Diplomacy
From negotiating with warlords and rogue regimes to securing the release of Americans held overseas, Ambassador Roger Carstens has mastered the balance of empathy, strategy, and leverage. In this keynote, he breaks down the core principles behind effective negotiation — principles that apply as much in the boardroom as they do in backchannel talks with hostile actors. Whether you’re closing a deal, navigating conflict, or leading complex partnerships, Carstens offers a compelling framework for negotiating with confidence, clarity, and purpose — even when the stakes are sky-high.

High-Stakes Leadership: Decision-Making Under Pressure When Failure Isn’t an Option
In business, as in hostage recovery, the margin for error can be razor thin. Ambassador Roger Carstens shares what it’s like to make life-and-death decisions while negotiating with some of the world’s most dangerous regimes — and how those same leadership principles apply to high-pressure environments in the corporate world. From building trust in adversarial situations to staying calm under fire and keeping teams aligned around a mission, Carstens offers compelling insights for leaders navigating complexity, risk, and rapid change.

Crisis Playbook: What Business Leaders Can Learn from Hostage Recovery Operations
When everything is on the line — reputations, lives, or the future of an organization — how do you lead with clarity, composure, and purpose? Drawing on years spent navigating some of the world’s most complex international crises, Ambassador Roger Carstens delivers a masterclass in managing chaos, aligning stakeholders, and turning pressure into performance.