India appoints D Bala Venkatesh Varma as Ambassador to Russia

NEW DELHI: Government of India has appointed senior diplomat D Bala Venkatesh Varma as India’s next ambassador to Russia, considered a high-profile posting due to expanse of strategic cooperation between the two countries.nnVarma, a 1988 batch Indian Foreign Service officer, is currently serving as Indian envoy in Spain.nnHe will succeed Pankaj Saran who has been appointed deputy National Security Advisor.nn”Varma is expected to take up the assignment shortly,” an External Affairs Ministry statement said.nnSaran has been India’s envoy to Russia since January 2016.