Vikram Misri Explained

Office:35th Foreign Secretary of India
Term Start:15 July 2024
Primeminister:Narendra Modi
Minister:S. Jaishankar
Predecessor:Vinay Mohan Kwatra
Office1:Deputy National Security Advisor of India
Termstart1:1 January 2022
Predecessor1:Pankaj Saran
Successor1:Pavan Kapoor
Termend1:14 July 2024
Office2:26th Ambassador of India to the People’s Republic of China
Term2:8 January 2019 - 11 December 2021
Vikram Misri
Predecessor2:Gautam Bambawale
Successor2:Pradeep Kumar Rawat
Birth Date:7 November 1964
Alma Mater:
Birth Place:Srinagar, India

Vikram Misri (born 7 November 1964) is an Indian diplomat. He currently serves as the 35th Foreign Secretary of India, having taken over from Vinay Mohan Kwatra in July 2024. Previously, he served as the Deputy National Security Advisor of India from 1 January 2022, succeeding Pankaj Saran till 14 July 2024.[1] Whereas, he has served as the ambassador of India to China from January 2019 to December 2021.[2]

Previously, he served as the private secretary to Prime Ministers Inder Kumar Gujral, Manmohan Singh and Narendra Modi,[3] and also as the Indian ambassador to Spain and Myanmar.[4] [5]

Early life and education

Misri was born on 7 November 1964 in Srinagar, India to a Kashmiri Hindu family. He attended Burn Hall school and DAV school in Srinagar and Carmel convent school in Udhampur. [6] He completed his early education at the Scindia School. He then completed his undergraduate degree in history from the Hindu College of the University of Delhi. He also completed an MBA at the XLRI –Xavier Labour Relations Institute, Jamshedpur.[7]

Career

After completing his education, Misri worked for three years in advertising. He did stints with Lintas India in Mumbai and contact advertising in Delhi.[8] He joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1989. Between 1991 and 1996, he served in various capacities in the Indian missions in Brussels and Tunis. He was appointed the Private Secretary to Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral in 1997. Following this, he had various stints in the Prime Ministers Office and Ministry of External Affairs, as well as several Indian missions abroad.

In 2012, he was appointed the private secretary to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.[9] He continued to serve in that capacity when Singh was succeeded by Narendra Modi. He was appointed the ambassador to Spain in 2014.[10] He was appointed the ambassador to Myanmar in 2016.

In 2019, he was appointed the ambassador to China. He was ambassador during the 2020–2021 China–India skirmishes and held a series of meetings with senior Chinese officials, including Liu Jianchao to discuss the tensions.[11] [12] [13] He was appointed as the Deputy National Security Adviser (NSA) from January 1, 2022.[14]

Foreign Secretary

On 28 June 2024, it was announced that Mr. Misri will succeed Vinay Mohan Kwatra to assume the post of Foreign Secretary of India. On 15 July 2024, he became the 35th Foreign Secretary of India.[15]

Personal life

He is married to Dolly Misri and has two children. He is fluent in English, Hindi, and Kashmiri, and has a working knowledge of French.

He is a fellow of ASPEN Institute USA's India leadership initiative, now known as the Kamalnayan Bajaj Fellowship.[16]

Notes and References

  1. News: China expert Vikram Misri, who has been aide to 3 PMs, is India's new deputy NSA . 28 December 2021 . Hindustan Times . 27 December 2021 . en.
  2. News: 7 December 2021 . Amb Vikram Misri had farewell call on Chinese FM Wang Yi, expressed hope for complete resolution of border issues soon . 28 December 2021 . NewsOnAIR.
  3. Web site: PTI. 2014-07-20. Sanjeev Kumar Singla appointed private secretary to PM Narendra Modi. 2021-07-11. mint. en.
  4. Web site: Ambassador's Profile. 2021-07-11. Embassy of India, Beijing, China.
  5. News: Vikram Misri Biography: Birth, Age, Early Life, Family, Education, Career, Assignments, and More . 28 December 2021 . Jagranjosh.com . 28 December 2021.
  6. Web site: 2024-07-15 . Vikram Misri, 1989 Batch IFS Officer Assumes Charge As New Foreign Secretary . 2024-07-15 . Times Now . en.
  7. News: PTI. 2019-01-08. Vikram Misri takes charge as India's new envoy to China. en-IN. The Hindu. 2021-07-11. 0971-751X.
  8. Web site: 2024-07-15 . Vikram Misri, 1989 Batch IFS Officer Assumes Charge As New Foreign Secretary . 2024-07-15 . Times Now . en.
  9. Web site: 2012-10-10. Reshuffle in PMO: IFS officer Vikram Misri made private secy. 2021-07-11. Hindustan Times. en.
  10. PTI . July 21, 2014 . Sanjeev Kumar Singla appointed as Private Secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. 2021-07-11. India Today. en.
  11. News: Chaudhury. Dipanjan Roy. Indian envoy to China Vikram Misri meets top party functionary to discuss LAC tensions. The Economic Times. 2021-07-11.
  12. News: Basu. Nayanima. 14 August 2020. India seeks more engagement with China on border row, envoy Misri meets top Chinese officials. The Print. 2021-07-13.
  13. Web site: ANI. Mar 6, 2021. Indian envoy meets Chinese vice foreign minister, emphasises on complete disengagement in eastern Ladakh India News - Times of India. 2021-07-13. The Times of India. en.
  14. News: economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/india . The Economic Times . Who is Vikram Misri? Know all about India's new Foreign Secretary . 11 August 2024 . The Economic Times . The Economic Times India.
  15. Web site: 2024-06-28 . Vikram Misri named India's next foreign secretary, who is he? . 2024-06-28 . Firstpost . en-us.
  16. Web site: 2024-07-15 . Vikram Misri, 1989 Batch IFS Officer Assumes Charge As New Foreign Secretary . 2024-07-15 . Times Now . en.