Harsh Vardhan Shringla

Harsh Vardhan Shringla (born 1962) is an Indian diplomat serving as the 33rd and current Foreign Secretary of India since 29 January 2020. He previously served as the Ambassador of India to the United States of America, High Commissioner to Bangladesh and Ambassador to Thailand.

On 29 January 2020, Shringla assumed the charge of Foreign Secretary of India as the 33rd Foreign Secretary. While addressing media ahead of taking charge, Shringla acknowledged the responsibilities and challenges that come with it and added that he will work under the leadership of Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister of India for a more secure and prosperous India.

Ambassador Shringla assumed charge as Indian Ambassador to the United States on 9 January 2019 at the age of 55 years making him the youngest Ambassador of India to the United States. He presented his credentials to the President of the United States Donald Trump on 11 January 2019, just two days after his arrival. On 7 February 2019, he received a rousing welcome at the Congressional Reception hosted by the Senate India Caucus and Congressional Caucus on India and Indian-Americans which was attended by an unprecedented 67 Members of the US Congress, including Senators.

The biggest event undoubtedly was Howdy Modi in Houston on 22 September 2019 where Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi was joined by the President of the United States Donald J. Trump to jointly address a gathering of over 50,000 Indian-Americans and 22 Members of US Congress, Senators and Governors, making it the largest event for a foreign Head of Government visiting the United States. The event was a crowning moment of an extremely successful visit by the Prime Minister of India to the United States during which he was awarded the Global Goalkeeper Award by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in recognition for the Swachh Bharat mission and was keynote speaker at the Bloomberg business event. He also had a productive bilateral meeting with President Trump in New York. The Prime Minister's meeting with top American energy sector CEOs in Houston also shone a light on the rapid progress being made in energy cooperation between India and the United States. India is now importing nearly $6 billion worth of oil and natural gas and imports are slated to increase to $8 billion in 2020.  

The booming energy relationship also contributed to reducing the trade imbalance and finding a mutually beneficial understanding of trade issues - a priority that he worked on actively during his tenure. His approach on strengthening trade and economic ties has been coordinating a whole of government approach in Delhi and taking the trade and investment potential conversation beyond Washington DC in the United States. For instance, to address the ground handling issue that had been simmering for some time, Shringla helped fast track inter-ministerial discussions in Delhi to find a solution. In each of the 21 US states he visited, priority was accorded to engage with business chambers and companies - Indian companies with a presence in the US and American companies invested or inclined to invest in India. In Denver, Colorado he addressed 150 senior US State trade development officers at the State International Development Organization (SIDO) Conference on US-India Trade and Investment Ties where he emphasized the growing economic relationship between the US and India and stated that 14 different US states and counties had opened trade offices in India. In another event in Washington, DC hosted by the Wilson Center in Partnership with NASSCOM, he highlighted the contributions made by Indian companies in the US in different sectors. In San Francisco, speaking at a panel discussion with the Lt. Governor of California, Eleni Kounalakis at the Bay Area Council Pacific Summit on Economic Prosperity in the Century of the Pacific on 21 June 2019, Shringla spoke at length about the business opportunities in a rising India and urged the Governor to lead a business delegation to India as well as open a trade office in India. Lt. Governor Kounalakis led a trade delegation to India in January 2020. In 2019, 4 Governors led trade delegations to India, including the Governors of Indiana, New Jersey, Colorado, and Arkansas. The Governor of Delaware is expected to lead a trade delegation to India.

Shringla continued the focus on the steadily strengthening India-US defense ties. The comprehensive Joint Statement issued at the 2+2 Dialogue held in Washington DC on 18 December 2019 reflected the significant progress made over a short span of time. Bidding farewell to Shringla at the historic Blair House in DC, US envoy and Acting Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Alice Wells praised him for his work and said, "we are going to have a captain of the relationship and somebody who will be committed to doing the delicate work that needs to be done to stitch two very important countries together". On his last day in US, Shringla had a farewell call on President Donal Trump. On 12 January 2020 he left for India, completing his assignment in the United States on a very high note meeting over 160 lawmakers, visiting 21 US states and bringing a new energy to the India-US relations during his eventful one-year stint as Ambassador of India to the United States.

Ambassador Shringla served with distinction as High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh from January 2016 to January 2019. During his time in Bangladesh, the bilateral relationship between India and Bangladesh witnessed huge strides forward. Ambassador Shringla played a pivotal role in the successful visit of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh to India in April 2017 adding a new chapter to strengthening the bilateral relationship, which Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi described as heralding of a ‘Sonali Adhyay’ or a Golden Era in the bilateral ties. As co-chair of the India-Bangladesh Joint Boundary Working Group Ambassador Shringla has been credited with finalizing the contours of the Land Boundary Agreement with Bangladesh.

Ambassador Shringla went on his first Ambassadorial assignment to the Kingdom of Thailand and served for two years from January 2014 to January 2016. During his tenure, a number of initiatives between India and Thailand in the political, security, economic and cultural domains brought the two countries closer.

Shringla has written extensively on a number of topics such as international economy, climate change, preventive diplomacy and India-US bilateral relations, including The United Nations and Conflict Prevention: Balance Between Sovereignty and Action (Indian Journal of International Law) and Project Granite at the New International Airport in Israel (CUTS International, 2011).

Ambassador Shringla is an avid reader and sports enthusiast, with an interest in mountaineering and hockey. He has been on a number of mountain expeditions including to Everest Base Camp, Friendship Peak in Himachal Pradesh. He was a liaison officer for the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra in 1996. He represented St. Stephen's College, Delhi in hockey at inter-college and other tournaments and received College Colors for this.

Ambassador Shringla joined the IFS in 1984 and in the course of a diplomatic career spanning over 35 years, he has held a variety of positions in New Delhi and abroad. He has served as Ambassador of India to the United States, High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh and Ambassador of India to the Kingdom of Thailand. He has also served in France (UNESCO); India's Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York; Vietnam (Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City); Israel and South Africa (Durban).