South Asia 2020: Towards Cooperation or Conflict?
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  • Speaker Profile: Amb. Rajiv Sikri

    Ambassador Rajiv Sikri joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1970 He retired as Secretary (East) in India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), handling East Asia, ASEAN, Pacific region, Arab world, Israel, Iran, and Central Asia (2004-06). Earlier he was Additional/Special Secretary for Economic Relations supervising India’s foreign economic relations, including India’s external tehnical and economic assistance programmes to developing countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America (2002-04). With a wide experience of Russia and Central Asia as well as the West, Mr. Sikri was India’s Ambassador to Kazakhstan (1995-99) and has served twice in Moscow, including as Political Counsellor (1984-88). He has been Head of the Soviet and East European Department (1991-92), Deputy Chief of Mission in Paris (1992-95), and Deputy Consul General and Commercial Consul in New York (1977-81). In India’s immediate neighbourhood, he was posted as Political First Secretary in Kathmandu (1981-84).

    Mr. Sikri has been Additional Secretary for Strategic Policy and Research (2001-02) and Director (Policy Planning) in MEA (1984), and Senior Fellow at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses in New Delhi (2000-2001). He was a Consultant with the Institute of South Asian Studies, NUS in 2007-2008 and member of the IISS, London; and the Royal Institute for International Affairs (Chatham House), London.

    He has recently published a book on India’s foreign policy titled Challenge and Strategy: Rethinking India’s Foreign Policy (Sage, New Delhi, 2009)

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