Nistula Hebbar: The global trouble-shooter

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At this moment, the two most famous Malayalis in the United Nations could not have been more different than each other. One of them, Shashi Tharoor, onetime United Nations secretary-general candidate and under-secretary-general for years, is a flamboyant author, media savvy and gets as many stares for his good looks as his celebrity status. He was the acceptable face to Kofi Annan's Volcker-ridden term.

The other, Vijay Nambiar, recently appointed UN chief of staff with the rank of under-secretary-general, is a seasoned career diplomat who has made a habit of zooming in and out of the different trouble spots all over the globe. Many have read of Nambiar as Annan's special political advisor, jetting into Lebanon and Tel Aviv during many face offs in West Asia, but not many know who exactly is Nambiar.

Nambiar, a 1967 batch Indian Foreign Service officer, has had a great run as a diplomat. Apart from being India's permanent representative to the UN, he was also India's envoy to Pakistan, China, Malaysia, Afghanistan and Algeria over the years.

As high commissioner to Pakistan, Nambiar saw the high of the build-up to the Agra summit in 2001, and also, the nadir of that relationship after the Indian Parliament was attacked on December 13 that year. India soon recalled him as its envoy as tensions escalated. At that time, the usually reticent Nambiar did feel frank enough to say that in the absence of political parties and martial rule, the sub-text of Pakistani civil society was pre-determined.

From Indian envoy to global trouble shooter as Annan's special political advisor, Nambiar wasted no time in making the transition. His assignments took him to all major trouble spots of the world, where his diplomatic skills were sorely tested.

After the death of J N Dixit, who was part of the strategic think tank of the PMO and a foreign affairs specialist, in 2005, Nambiar was brought into the breach as deputy national security advisor, junior to National Security Advisor M K Narayanan, in order to avoid any clash between foreign policy imperatives and internal security concerns. Here, too, Nambiar replaced someone flamboyant and media savvy, with his own reticent personality. He blended well with Narayanan and, indeed, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's own tendency to stay in the background.

United Nation Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon, while announcing Nambiar's appointment, described him as a friend, someone for whom he had great respect, and who would ensure "continuity with change". Certainly, a good description to get as a consummate back-room operator, who has made a career out of dropping into world class conflicts which appear intractable. With his smooth ways, who knows, Nambiar may yet succeed where his Malayali compatriot failed, the top job in the UN.