Vijay Gokhale, an Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer of the 1981 batch, took charge as India’s 32nd Foreign Secretary on…
Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale (Photo: Twitter/@MEAIndia)
Vijay Gokhale, an Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer of the 1981 batch, took charge as India’s 32nd Foreign Secretary on Monday, 29 January. He succeeds S Jaishankar at a time when India’s relations with its neighbours are under a strain. Before taking on the role, he served as Secretary (ER) from October 2017 to January 2018.
Gokhale is considered an expert on China and has been instrumental in solving the 73-day long Doklam crisis of 2017. His appointment is therefore crucial to India’s diplomatic dealings with China given that Beijing is still posing assertively in the Doklam region.
At the same time India’s ties with Pakistan continue to be in a limbo because of Pak-sponsored terrorism. India has been accusing Pakistan for harbouring terrorists on its soil and not taking any action against them.
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The release of Hafiz Saeed from house arrest and Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khan Abbasi’s defence of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) founder exposed Islamabad’s brazen support for terrorists who attack India and other neighbouring nations.
The change in government in Nepal, India’s criticism in the state-controlled media in Maldives, Chinese influence on Sri Lanka (Hambantota port has been handed to Beijing for 99 years), increasing presence of China in the Indian Ocean Region and the upcoming elections in Bangladesh are what will keep the new Foreign Secretary busy.
Gokhale has previously served as the Ambassador of India to the People’s Republic of China from January 2016 to October 2017. Before that he served as High Commissioner of India to Malaysia from January 2010 to October 2013.
He has also held postings in Hong Kong, Hanoi, and New York. He has also served as Deputy Secretary (Finance), Director (China & East Asia) and Joint Secretary (East Asia) during his stints at the Headquarters of the Ministry of External Affairs.
Gokhale will have a two-year tenure as Foreign Secretary.
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