Mr. Lalit Mansingh has served as India’s foreign secretary, ambassador to the United States, and high commissioner to the United Kingdom. He has also been an ambassador in the United Arab Emirates and high commissioner in Nigeria with concurrent accreditation to Benin, Chad, and the Cameroons.
Ambassador Mansingh joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1963, securing the first position in the All India Civil Service Examination. After his initial posting in Geneva, he served as deputy chief of mission in the Indian Embassies in Kabul, Brussels, and Washington. At headquarters in Delhi, Ambassador Mansingh’s assignments included: Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, Director General of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations, Dean of the Foreign Service Institute, and Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs.
Ambassador Mansingh is active in several international initiatives for conflict resolution, regional security, and sustainable development. As a member of an international group of elder statesmen constituted by The Brookings, Stanford,d and New York University, he worked on a project entitled “Managing Global Insecurity” that resulted in a publication, “Power and Responsibility” in 2009. Ambassador Mansingh is part of a number of Track II dialogues between India and its neighbours, including Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Nepal.

* Current engagements
<Overseas>
- Member, Asia Pacific Leadership Network, Canberra
- Member, International Advisory Committee, APCO Worldwide, Washington, DC
- Principal-Asia, Ambassadors Group, Washington, DC

<India>
- Prof Emeritus, the Foreign Service Institute, New Delhi
- Member, Governing Body of Development Alternatives, New Delhi
- Global Envoy for Buddhism, International Buddhist Confederation, New Delhi.
- Chairman, Kalinga-Indonesia Dialogue
- Chairman, Kalinga-Lanka Foundation