PM Modi’s senior aide Dr Deepak Mittal appointed India’s new Ambassador to UAE

Dr Deepak Mittal, a 1998-batch officer of the Indian Foreign Service (IFS), has been appointed the next ambassador of India to the UAE, the Ministry of External Affairs announced on Tuesday.

Dr Mittal will succeed Sunjay Sudhir, who assumed office in November 2021.

Dr Mittal currently serves as additional secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, working in the Prime Minister’s Office. A seasoned diplomat, he has held several key assignments, including serving as India’s Ambassador to Qatar from August 2020 to March 2023.

According to ANI, Dr Mittal played a key role in establishing the first formal diplomatic contact between India and Taliban after the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan. He met Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai, then head of the Taliban's Political Office in Doha, in 2021.

His appointment as the new ambassador comes amid deepening cooperation between India and the UAE across sectors such as trade, investment, energy and technology. Dr Mittal is expected to take up the assignment shortly.