Prof. Venu Rajamony

Ambassador Venu Rajamony is a career diplomat with 34 years of experience, scholar and former journalist. He is a well-known public speaker, author and patron of arts and culture. Prof. Rajamony was Ambassador of India to The Netherlands from 2017 to 2020. He was also the Permanent Representative of India to the Organization for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons at The Hague, and responsible for India’s relations with the International Court of Justice and the Permanent Court of Arbitration.

Prof. Rajamony’s tenure in The Netherlands witnessed several high-level visits and unique initiatives to enhance the profile of India. These included the opening of the Ambassador’s house, a tourism promotion initiative called “Bollywood on a Boat” in the canals of Amsterdam; wellness festivals to mark International Yoga Day in Amsterdam’s Museumplein and Dam Square; annual Gandhi Marches in the city of The Hague and an outreach programme to schools and colleges disseminating the message of non-violence.

Prof. Rajamony appeared on behalf of India before the International Court of Justice in the matter of “Advisory Opinion concerning the Legal Consequences of the Separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius.” He was Member of the Indian delegation before the ICJ in the Jadhav case (India v. Pakistan) and Co-Agent of India in Enrica Lexie case (Italy v. India) before the Permanent Court of Arbitration.

Prof. Rajamony authored two books during this tenure in the Netherlands – What We Can Learn from The Dutch – Rebuilding Kerala post 2018 Floods and India and the Netherlands – Past, Present and Future. The latter was released by the Dutch King Hiss Royal Highness Willem-Alexander in September 2019 and has won praise as an encyclopaedia of the cross-cultural encounter between India and the Netherlands. The book What Can We Learn from The Dutch – Rebuilding Kerala Post 2018 Floods was released in January 2019.

He held the office of Press Secretary to the Indian President Pranab Mukherjee from 2012 to 2017. He was part of President Mukherjee’s team during interaction with visiting leaders such as Emperor Akihito of Japan, President Xi Jinping of China, President Vladimir Putin of Russia and President Barack Obama of USA. He was member of President Mukherjee’s delegation during State visits to 20 countries, including China, Russia, Israel, Bangladesh, and Vietnam. He also accompanied the President on more than 100 official tours within India.

Prof. Rajamony served as Joint Secretary and head of Multilateral Institutions Division of the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India from 2010-2012. He was responsible for formulating India’s policies towards the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the African Development Bank, and the International Fund for Agricultural Development.

His tenure as Consul General of India in Dubai from 2007 to 2010 marked a high point in relations between India and the United Arab Emirates. He received great acclaim for his efforts to advance the welfare of the over two million Indians, promote trade and investment, reach out to UAE nationals, and enhance India’s image and soft power.

He also served in the Indian missions in Hong Kong, Beijing, Geneva, and Washington, D.C. He worked as Chef de Cabinet to External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha from 2003 to 2005 and was Asia Foundation Fellow at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington DC between 2001 and 2002. He authored a monograph – ‘The India-China-US Triangle: A Soft Balance of Power in the Making’ during his fellowship at the CSIS. Fluent in Chinese, which he studied at the University of Hong Kong. Prof. Rajamony is proficient in Tamil, Hindi, Malayalam, and French.