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Shashank takes over as Foreign Secretary
New Delhi, Dec 02: Shashank, a seasoned career diplomat, will takeover as Foreign Secretary today at a time when India`s ties with Pakistan are showing signs of thaw and those with the US, China, Russia and Europe are on an upswing.
New Delhi, Dec 02: Shashank, a seasoned career diplomat, will takeover as Foreign Secretary today at a time when India's ties with Pakistan are showing signs of thaw
and those with the US, China, Russia and Europe are on an upswing.
A 1966-batch IFS officer, Shashank succeeds Kanwal Sibal who retired Sunday after an 18-month stint.
Engaging his immediate attention will be Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's visit to Nigeria for the Commonwealth Summit starting from December four.
Shashank, who has served in the Indian High Commission in Islamabad from 1982 to 1986, will also find himself in the midst of preparatory work leading up to the Saarc Summit in the Pakistan capital in the first week of January.
During his long diplomatic career, Shashank has held postings in a host of countries including Denmark, South Korea, Libya, Egypt, Vietnam, Brazil and in India's permanent mission at the UN in New York. He also served in various capacities in the Ministry of External Affairs here and was Secretary (Economic Relations) and Secretary (Europe, Africa and America) before moving to the top slot.
Shashank has been actively involved in energising the Asean-India relations resulting in two summits.
Having economic diplomacy as one of his priority areas, Shashank has played an instrumental role in the establishment of the India-South Africa-Brazil (IBSA) forum.
Bureau Report
A 1966-batch IFS officer, Shashank succeeds Kanwal Sibal who retired Sunday after an 18-month stint.
Engaging his immediate attention will be Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's visit to Nigeria for the Commonwealth Summit starting from December four.
Shashank, who has served in the Indian High Commission in Islamabad from 1982 to 1986, will also find himself in the midst of preparatory work leading up to the Saarc Summit in the Pakistan capital in the first week of January.
During his long diplomatic career, Shashank has held postings in a host of countries including Denmark, South Korea, Libya, Egypt, Vietnam, Brazil and in India's permanent mission at the UN in New York. He also served in various capacities in the Ministry of External Affairs here and was Secretary (Economic Relations) and Secretary (Europe, Africa and America) before moving to the top slot.
Shashank has been actively involved in energising the Asean-India relations resulting in two summits.
Having economic diplomacy as one of his priority areas, Shashank has played an instrumental role in the establishment of the India-South Africa-Brazil (IBSA) forum.
Bureau Report