Ex-diplomat Mohan Kumar congratulates Hardeep Puri on completing five decades in public life

New Delhi [India], July 20 : Former diplomat, Mohan Kumar congratulated Union Minister Hardeep Puri on completing five decades in public service and recalled how he contributed to uplifting India's interests and standings at the global level.
Mohan Kumar is India's former ambassador to France and is currently associated with OP Jindal Global University. Puri, who is the Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas in the current National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government, is also a former diplomat and has served in various diplomatic positions.
https://x.com/AmbMoKumar/status/1813986152124457347
Taking to X, Mohan Kumar said, "Heartiest congratulations to IFS icon and mentor @HardeepSPuri Ji on completing five glorious decades in public life. I had the privilege of starting my career with him and interacting on many foreign and economic policy areas thereafter and to succeed him as Chairman RIS."
Heaping praise on Hardeep Puri, he said Puri was "formidable" in defending India's charm interests whenever it faced any challenge.
He also pointed out that Puri was the youngest to Chair key committees of GATT and"A brilliant IFS officer of 1974 batch, stellar diplomat, powerful orator, he would launch a charm offensive to win friends for India. Equally, he was formidable in defending India's interests whenever challenged. He was an exemplar for us in IFS in the way he developed domain mastery over every subject and territorial jurisdiction he dealt with," Kumar said.
"He was the youngest to Chair key committees of GATT and was in the largest number of Dispute Settlement Panels of GATT/ WTO as an authority on international Trade. He brought gravitas to economic diplomacy both as Director (MER) and later Secretary (ER)," he added.
https://x.com/AmbMoKumar/status/1813986321700204867
Mohan Kumar highlighted that the Union Minister had previously served as India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations in both Geneva and New York. He added that as India's envoy in Brazil, he lifted the ties between New Delhi and Brazilia to greater heights.
"As a multilateralist par excellence he was India's Permanent Representative to the UN in both Geneva & New York and wielded influence way above India's power league and left an indelible imprint. In a moment of reckoning for India and global peace and security, he steered India's membership of the UNSC and chaired UN's Counter-Terrorism Committee of the Security Council," Kumar said.
"His ambassadorship in Brazil was remarkable for lifting that relationship to greater heights and in carving a new geography of international trade and economy through India-Brazil partnership including in IBSA and BRICS. I saw him lend his deft touch to Indo-British ties as India's DHC in London and to India-West Europe and Indo-US relations at crucial junctures as JS (EW)/ JS (AMS)," he added.
The former diplomat recalled Puri's work in Sri Lanka. He also said that the IFS fraternity celebrated Hardeep Puri joined Prime Minister Narendra Modi's cabinet.
"An ideas and action entrepreneur, he often ventured into paths never trodden by IFS officers. I saw in Sri Lanka how like a fearless soldier-diplomat, he bravely walked through the landmines in Jaffna, boldly negotiated with LTTE leader Prabhakaran and brought him to Delhi to join the Indo-Sri Lanka peace agreement. At the Defence Ministry, he became the first foreign service officer to head a division of the armed forces as JS (Navy)," Kumar stated.
"IFS fraternity also celebrated Hardeep Ji joining PM @narendramodi's Council of Ministers serving with distinction as India's longest serving Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs (7 years) & as Ministers of Civil Aviation and Commerce and now continues as Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas for three years, ensuring energy security through oil diplomacy in trying times," he added.