Singaporean diplomat Bilahari Kausikan to deliver Atal Behari Vajpayee Memorial lecture
1 min read . Updated: 22 Jan 2023, 07:52 PM IST
Premium- Kausikan, who is currently chairman of the Middle East Institute at the National University of Singapore, was formerly Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Singapore
The Ministry of External Affairs has invited veteran Singaporean diplomat Bilahari Kausikan to deliver the third Atal Behari Vajpayee Memorial Lecture. The event will be organised on 23 January 2023.
Kausikan, who is currently Chairman of the Middle East Institute at the National University of Singapore, was formerly Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Singapore. From 1995 to 1998, Kausikan also served as Singapore’s Ambassador to the United Nations. A career diplomat, Kausikan joined Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1981. He served as Ambassador to Russia, Finland, Canada and Mexico before taking charge of the Foreign Ministry.
Kausikan is a noted thinker on Southeast Asia and international affairs, He is also the author of three books on foreign affairs.
Kausikan also has a connection to India. His father, diplomat PS Raman, was born in then-Madras Province before Independence. After the end of World War II and India’s independence in 1947, Raman settled in Singapore and became one of the island nation’s first generation of diplomats. Raman served as Singapore’s Ambassador to Indonesia, Australia and Russia.
“The topic of the lecture will be “The Future of Global Uncertainty". External Affairs Minister, Dr. S. Jaishankar will preside over the event," says a press release by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs.
“This memorial lecture series is organized as a tribute to late Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, a towering statesman who immensely contributed to crafting India’s Foreign Policy both as External Affairs Minister and as Prime Minister," the press statement goes on to say.
Earlier speakers at this forum include former Defence and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and former President of India Pranab Mukherjee.
