The government today officially announced the appointment of foreign secretary Nirupama Rao as the next ambassador to the United States, an assignment she will take up shortly.
“Rao has been appointed as the next Indian ambassador to the US and is expected to take up her assignment shortly”, an official spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.
Her appointment to succeed Meera Shankar as the ambassador to the US was cleared by the government last month.
The 1973-batch IFS officer assumed the office of foreign secretary on August 1, 2009, becoming only the second woman to head the post after Chokila Iyer.
She was to retire in December 2010, at 60 years of age. However, she was given an extension till July-end, when the government fixed a two-year term for the post.
Rao has been India’s envoy to various countries, including China and Sri Lanka.
