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He will take over from Ms Nirupama Rao, who
retires July 31, said a brief press statement
issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA)
June 27 shortly after his name was approved by
the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC)
from a panel of three officers.
A career diplomat, Mr Mathai belongs to the
1974 batch of Indian Foreign Service (IFS). He
moved to Paris in 2007 after serving as the Deputy
High Commissioner in London, and would have retired
in 2012 in normal course. But as the Foreign Secretary's
term is now fixed for two years, he would serve
in his new assignment till July 31, 2013.
Unassuming, well informed, welcoming and a good
speaker, Mr Mathai also served as Ambassador to
Qatar and Israel, and in various other diplomatic
assignments including in the United States, Austria,
Belgium, Iran and Sri Lanka as well as in the
MEA here in New Delhi.
Mr Mathai has played an important role in strengthening
overall relations with various countries he was
posted to. During the 1999 conflict over Pakistan’s
intrusions and occupation of Kargil heights inside
the Indian side of Kashmir, he and Air Chief Marshal
(designate) N A K Browne – then a younger
officer – played a significant role in acquiring
modern weapons for the Indian Armed Forces.
Both of them now assume their new assignments
at the same time.
The Kargil War in fact kick-started the process
of transformation of the Indian Armed Forces,
which is rapidly taking shape at present at least
in the case of the Indian Air Force (IAF) and
Indian Navy (IN). What Ambassador Mathai and Air
Marshal Browne – now Vice Chief of the Air
Staff – did at that time have turned out
in reality to be the first steps in this process
of transformation.
The routine modernization of the Indian Armed
Forces and intelligence organisations was otherwise
literally dormant after 1990.
Interestingly, Ms Rao has already been nominated
as Ambassador to the United States to succeed
Ms Meera Shankar, her 1973 IFS batch mate who
is serving on an 8-month extension there till
July 31.
Ms Rao has been deft at handling diplomacy,
politics as well as the rather aggressive Indian
media. She is also an accomplished singer and
her favourite number, which she used to play on
guitar early during her career, was ‘Those
Were the Days’ by Mary Hopkins.
Mr Mathai should return from Paris mid-July
to take over as Officer on Special Duty (OSD)
for briefings at the Ministry and exchanging notes
with his predecessor in preparation for his new
appointment.
The Ministry also announced the appointment
of Mr Rajiv Kumar Chander, presently Joint Secretary
at headquarters, as India's next Ambassador to
Ukraine.
He is expected to take up his assignment shortly.
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