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US President Donald Trump has nominated career diplomat Natalie Baker as the next US ambassador to Pakistan, sending her name to the US Senate for confirmation.
The White House announced the nomination on Monday, November 9. Baker is currently serving as the US chargé d’affaires in Islamabad.
Her nomination will be reviewed by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee before proceeding to a vote by the full Senate.
She will formally assume the ambassadorial post if confirmed.
Baker took charge as chargé d’affaires at the US Embassy in Islamabad in January 2025, following the departure of then-ambassador Donald Blome.
She previously served as deputy chief of mission at the US Embassy in Doha, Qatar, from August 2021 to July 2024.
Her diplomatic career also includes assignments in Libya, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, as well as senior positions at the US Department of State.
She served as director of the Office of North African Affairs in the State Department’s Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs and as deputy director of the Iran Regional Presence Office at the US Consulate in Dubai.
If confirmed, Baker will become the first US ambassador to Pakistan since Blome left the post in early 2025, ending a nearly two-year gap in the appointment of a permanent envoy.
