{"id":311,"date":"2026-06-04T11:24:40","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T11:24:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/navdeepsuri.com\/?page_id=311"},"modified":"2026-06-04T12:24:10","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T12:24:10","slug":"diplomatic-journey","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/navdeepsuri.com\/index.php\/diplomatic-journey\/","title":{"rendered":"Diplomatic Journey"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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  • \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tDiplomatic Journey<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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    Diplomatic Career<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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    As a career diplomat, Navdeep was a member of the Indian Foreign Service from 1983 until his superannuation in September 2019. During this period, he held a range of challenging assignments at the Ministry of External Affairs headquarters in New Delhi and in India\u2019s diplomatic missions abroad. He retired as India\u2019s Ambassador to UAE after receiving the Order of Zayed II, the country\u2019s second highest civilian award. He had earlier served as High Commissioner in Australia, Ambassador in Egypt, Consul General in South Africa and Counsellor in London and First Secretary in Washington DC.
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    Amongst his peer group and with those who have interacted with him professionally, Navdeep is known for his passion and commitment, his out-of-the-box thinking and innovative approach, his embrace of technology-based solutions and his relentless focus on securing the desired outcomes. He brings with him a vast amount of international experience, a rigorous intellect, acknowledged communication skills and a remarkable ability to \u2018connect the dots\u2019 to discern the big picture<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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    1983<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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    Diplomatic Career<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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    Navdeep worked for two years in Steel Authority of India Ltd before joining the Indian Foreign Service in 1983. He worked as a junior diplomat at the Indian diplomatic missions in Egypt and Syria, learning Arabic and getting a sound understanding of the Middle East.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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    1991<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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    Economic Reforms<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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    Upon return to Delhi in 1991, he was deployed in the Ministry\u2019s Economic Division and soon became actively involved in promoting India\u2019s nascent economic reforms program. He collaborated with Arthur Andersen to produce the first set of Doing Business with India publicity material and won particular acclaim for his initiative to put all the new policies on a floppy disk. The floppy disk became a visual symbol of India\u2019s changing mindset and was showcased at a major investment promotion conference in Singapore in October 1991 by then Finance Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and MoS Commerce P. Chidambaram. As a relatively junior officer, Navdeep became a mascot for the economic reform program and was a part of the government\u2019s investment promotion missions to the US, Japan and the Gulf.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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    1993<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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    He moved to Washington DC in 1993 and spent the next four years on Capitol Hill developing India\u2019s relations with the US Congress. He was the point of contact for India\u2019s lobbying efforts and worked closely with Edelman PR to promote the India story. This was also the time that an India Caucus first emerged in the House of Representatives as a powerful voice for better Indo-US ties. Late Amb. Naresh Chandra often spoke warmly of Navdeep\u2019s contribution to these developments.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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    2000<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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    Following a somewhat uneventful term in Tanzania where he mainly focused on trade promotion efforts, Navdeep was assigned to the High Commission in London as Press Counsellor and Spokesperson in 2000. His stint in London was notable for his wide-ranging contacts in the British media, the launch of an India Digest electronic newsletter and for being India\u2019s face on BBC, Sky News, Channel 4 etc in the wake of the Bhuj earthquake, the Gujarat riots and the attack on the Indian parliament. He also coordinated ties with the Liberal Democrats and provided direction to the PR firm engaged by the mission.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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    2004-2006<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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    Navdeep returned to India in 2004 and was asked to head the neglected West Africa division. He traveled extensively in Africa to lay the foundation for the first India-Africa summit, for the Pan-African e-education and e-healthcare network envisioned by President Abdul Kalam and for India\u2019s Lines of Credit with the objective of promoting Indian exports and developing goodwill. He was particularly successful in developing India\u2019s outreach into Francophone countries like Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and DR Congo.
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    He moved to Johannesburg as Consul General in 2006 and is remembered for his economic diplomacy initiatives to establish the India Business Group and start an annual Doing Business with India conference in collaboration with CII. He also started an annual cultural festival themed \u2018Shared Histories: Celebrating India in South Africa\u2019 using an innovative PPP model where private sponsors supplemented the resources provided by the two governments.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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    2009-2010<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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    Coming back to Delhi in 2009, Navdeep was asked to take charge of the rudderless Public Diplomacy department. He took a particular interest in making use of emerging social media channels as tools of digital diplomacy and participated in workshops at Wilton Park, UK and USC, Los Angeles. Overcoming strong resistance from the bureaucracy, he ensured that in July 2010, the Ministry of External Affairs became the first government entity to establish an active presence on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. The effectiveness of these channels as a mode of communication was validated during crises such as the evacuation of Indian nationals from Libya. The pioneering effort resulted in two prestigious awards for Navdeep.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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    2010-2014<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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    Egypt<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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    In the wake of the Arab Spring, Navdeep was sent as Ambassador to Egypt and played a vital role in establishing ties with the post-Mubarak order. Despite the turmoil in the country, he was able to promote India\u2019s business interests, establish an India Business Group and use India\u2019s soft power to create an annual festival called India by the Nile. This has become Egypt\u2019s largest foreign festival and is continuing into its 8th year. He also expanded the embassy\u2019s social media presence to reach out to diverse groups and in particular to the Egyptian youth.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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    2014-2015<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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    After PM Modi\u2019s election in 2014, Australian PM Tony Abbott was one of the first foreign dignitaries to visit India and there was a renewed focus on India-Australia ties. Navdeep was asked to move to Canberra as High Commissioner in April 2015 and to develop a strategic agenda. He worked to enhance defense cooperation and also engaged with Australian super funds and other institutional investors to expand their investments into India.\u00a0 PM\u2019s commitment to organise a major Festival of India was honoured and \u2018Confluence\u2019 became the largest cultural projection of its kind, featuring 72 events in 7 cities over a 3-month period.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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    2015<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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    UAE<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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    Navdeep spent only a year and a half in Australia before being asked to move to Abu Dhabi and build on the momentum generated by PM\u2019s visit in August 2015. In less than three years, he was able to add substance to the Strategic Partnership agreement, develop defense and security cooperation and work closely with sovereign funds like ADIA and Mubadala. This has resulted in multi-billion-dollar investments into India\u2019s financial sector and into areas like real estate, housing, highways, renewable energy and logistics. He has also engaged with ADNOC and helped India get its first onshore and offshore oil concessions in UAE and in commissioning India\u2019s first strategic petroleum reserve in Mangalore. He has developed particularly close ties with the leadership in Abu Dhabi and his efforts have been widely acknowledged, securing the Indian embassy the award of Best Diplomatic Mission in UAE for two consecutive years. In an exceptionally rare gesture, the President of UAE conferred on him their second highest civilian award – the Order of Zayed II – in recognition of his contribution to stronger bilateral ties.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n

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      Diplomatic Journey Diplomatic Career As a career diplomat, Navdeep was a member of the Indian Foreign Service from 1983 until […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"elementor_header_footer","meta":{"postBodyCss":"","postBodyMargin":[],"postBodyPadding":[],"postBodyBackground":{"backgroundType":"classic","gradient":""},"site-sidebar-layout":"no-sidebar","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"full-width-container","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"disabled","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-311","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/navdeepsuri.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/311","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/navdeepsuri.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/navdeepsuri.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/navdeepsuri.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/navdeepsuri.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=311"}],"version-history":[{"count":37,"href":"https:\/\/navdeepsuri.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/311\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":360,"href":"https:\/\/navdeepsuri.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/311\/revisions\/360"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/navdeepsuri.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=311"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}