On 19 October 2006, the IIS held a Special Round Table Discussion with Ambassador Rajiv Sikri, Former Secretary, Indian Ministry of External Affairs. Ambassador Sikri led a discussion on ‘India and Central Asia: A Strategic Relationship’.
Until last month, Ambassador Rajiv Sikri was Secretary (Deputy Minister) in the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi, in charge of India’s relations with Central Asia, Caucasus, East Asia, ASEAN, the Pacific region, the Arab world, Israel and Iran. He served as Secretary (East) for the past two years. Earlier, he was Special Secretary (Economic Relations) and Additional Secretary (Strategy & Research) in the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi. In the latter post he was responsible for long-term strategic planning and forecasting. He also served as Ambassador of India to Kazakhstan and as Deputy Chief of Mission at the Indian Embassy in Paris. Having joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1970, he retired in October 2006. Ambassador Sikri is a keen photographer and fluent in Russian and French.
