Who is Vinay Mohan Kwatra, India's new foreign secretary? All you need to know

Vinay Mohan Kwatra, a diplomat for over 32 years, will be India’s next Foreign Secretary, succeeding Harsh Vardhan Shringla, who retires on April 30.

Kwatra, a 1988 batch of the IFS has been serving as the Ambassador in Kathmandu since January 2020.

According to the Ministry of Personnel order issued on Monday, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Kwatra to the post of Foreign Secretary upon the superannuation of Harsh Vardhan Shringla on April 30.

Vinay Mohan Kwatra was born in 1965 and he holds a degree of Master in Science (M.Sc) He has previously served at the Ministry of External Affairs, and Prime Minister's Office as Joint Secretary.

He was posted in Beijing twice between 2003 and 2006, first as Counsellor and thereafter as Deputy Chief of Mission in the Embassy of India. From May 2010 till July 2013, he served as minister (commerce) in the Embassy of India, Washington DC.

Other names which seemed to be front-runners apart from Kwatra were India’s Ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhu, who is also from the 1988 batch, and also Ajay Bisaria, a 1987-batch IFS who is India’s High Commissioner to Canada.

Kwatra also served as the Ambassador to France and speaks French fluently. He was instrumental in implementing the Rafale fighter jet deal, under which India bought 36 aircraft off the shelf.

Most recently, Kwatra, who has been India’s envoy to Nepal since March 2020, managed the crisis that emerged when the Himalayan country changed its political map in May 2020 and included the disputed territories of India as its own.

He headed the policy planning and research division of the Ministry of External Affairs between July 2013 and October 2015 and later served as the head of the Americas Division in the Foreign Ministry where he dealt with India's relations with the United States and Canada.