Senior diplomat D Bala Venkatesh Varma was today appointed as India's next ambassador to Russia, considered a high-profile posting due to expanse of strategic cooperation between the two countries.
Varma, a 1988 batch Indian Foreign Service officer, is currently serving as Indian envoy in Spain.
He will succeed Pankaj Saran who has been appointed deputy National Security Advisor.
"Varma is expected to take up the assignment shortly," an External Affairs Ministry statement said.
Saran has been India's envoy to Russia since January 2016.
The government also appointed Partha Satpathy as next Ambassador of India to Ukraine.
A 1990 batch IFS officer, Satpathy is currently serving as joint secretary at the MEA headquarters here.
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