Foreign Secretary (Pakistan)
The Foreign Secretary of Pakistan is the bureaucratic head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Secretary, as in all other ministries of Government of Pakistan, works under the Minister who is a member of National Assembly. The Foreign Secretary is usually a seasoned diplomat, who is a Grade I 22 officer of the Central Superior Services of Pakistan.
Due to the unstable political history of Pakistan, the bureaucrats were usually the policymakers of the country. Similarly, foreign policy of Pakistan was mostly thought up by the then military/political rulers and implemented by the ministry of foreign affairs under chairmanship of the Secretary. Such was the case in the United States opening of relations with China, in which Pakistan acted an important role. It was the then Foreign Secretary Sultan M. Khan who was to arrange the secret visit of U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger to China via Pakistan. This visit paved the way to opening of Sino-U.S. relations under President Richard Nixon.[1]
Some of other foreign secretaries, Agha Shahi, Abdul Sattar, Inamulhaque later rose to be Foreign Minister of Pakistan.
The 26th Foreign Secretary was Salman Bashir, who was nominated by the ruling coalition in April 2008. He served as Foreign Secretary until 3 March 2012. He was then appointed as Pakistan's High Commisdioner to India. n[2] Jalil Abbas Jilani remained in the office from 3 March 2012 to December 2013 before he was appointed as Ambassador to the United States in December 2013.[3]
The current Foreign Secretary is Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry, who took the charge of this office in December 2013.[4]
List of Foreign Secretaries
| No. | Name of Foreign Secretary | Entered Office | Left Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mohammed Ikramullah | 15 August 1947 | 16 October 1951 |
| 2 | Mirza Osman Ali Baig | 16 October 1951 | 30 November 1952 |
| 3 | Akhtar Hussain | 1 December 1952 | 4 June 1953 |
| 4 | J.A. Rahim | 4 June 1953 | 11 January 1955 |
| 5 | Sikandar Ali Baig | 10 October 1955 | 30 June 1959 |
| 6 | Mohammed Ikramullah | 1 July 1959 | 11 May 1961 |
| 7 | S.K. Dehlavi | 12 May 1961 | 26 July 1963 |
| 8 | Aziz Ahmed | 26 July 1963 | 23 June 1966 |
| 9 | S.M. Yusuf | 24 June 1966 | 1 July 1970 |
| 10 | Sultan Muhammad Khan | 1 July 1970 | 31 March 1972 |
| 11 | Iftikhar Ali | 31 March 1972 | 1 January 1973 |
| 12 | Mumtaz Ali Alvie | 1 January 1973 | 7 May 1973 |
| 13 | Agha Shahi | 6 July 1973 | 6 July 1977 |
| 14 | Sardar Shah Nawaz | 6 July 1977 | 29 May 1980 |
| 15 | Riaz Piracha | 29 May 1980 | 10 July 1982 |
| 16 | Niaz A. Naik | 11 July 1982 | 30 May 1986 |
| 17 | Abdul Sattar | 31 May 1986 | 2 August 1988 |
| 18 | Humayun Khan | 3 August 1988 | 22 February 1989 |
| 19 | Tanvir Ahmad Khan | 30 December 1989 | 30 August 1990 |
| 20 | Shahryar Khan | 30 August 1990 | 29 March 1994 |
| 21 | Najmuddin Shaikh | 30 April 1994 | 24 February 1997 |
| 22 | Shamshad Ahmad | 25 February 1997 | 17 February 2000 |
| 23 | Inam-ul-Haq | 17 February 2000 | 21 June 2002 |
| 24 | Riaz Khokhar | 6 August 2002 | 14 February 2005 |
| 25 | Riaz Mohammad Khan | 15 February 2005 | 25 April 2008 |
| 26 | Salman Bashir | 3 May 2008 | 3 March 2012 |
| 27 | Jalil Abbas Jilani | 3 March 2012 | December 2013 |
| 28 | Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry | December 2013 | Incumbent |
See also
- Foreign relations of Pakistan
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Pakistan)
- Minister of Foreign Affairs (Pakistan)
- List of Serving Secretaries to the Government of (Pakistan) and Top Brass Bureaucrats
References
- ↑ M.M. Ali, "Former Pakistani Foreign Secretary Sultan Mohammed Khan’s Colorful Life Parallels His Country’s History" Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, March 1999
- ↑ A.G. Noorani "Killing the messenger" Daily Times, May 30, 2008
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