A seasoned diplomat and former Indian ambassador to China, Vikram Misri, who is also regarded as an expert on China, assumed charge as India’s new Foreign Secretary on Monday (July 15).
A 1989-batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer, Misri succeeded Vinay Kwatra. Misri assumed charge of the key position at a time when India is looking to navigate various foreign policy challenges, including its frosty ties with China following the lingering eastern Ladakh border row.
“Shri Vikram Misri assumed charge as Foreign Secretary today. #TeamMEA extends a warm welcome to Foreign Secretary Misri and wishes him a successful tenure ahead,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal announced on X.
Previously, Misri served as the deputy national security advisor (NSA). He has the rare distinction of being a private secretary to three prime ministers: Inder Kumar Gujral, Manmohan Singh, and Narendra Modi.
Before his role as deputy NSA, Misri was India’s ambassador to China from 2019 to 2021, where he played a key role in talks between India and China following the Galwan Valley clashes in June 2020, which marked the most serious military conflict between the two nations in decades.
Throughout his decorated career, Misri also served as India’s ambassador to Spain (2014-2016) and Myanmar (2016-2018) and held positions in several Indian missions, including those in Pakistan, the US, Germany, Belgium, and Sri Lanka.
(With inputs from PTI)
