US President Joe Biden to nominate former India American ambassador Richard Verma as deputy secretary of state

NEW DELHI: President Joe Biden announced his intent on Friday to nominate Richard R. Verma, former US ambassador to India, to be deputy secretary of state for management and resources, according to a press release from The White House.

Richard Verma is the chief legal officer and head of global public policy at Mastercard. He was the United States Ambassador to India and assistant secretary of state for legislative affairs during the Obama administration, the release said. Earlier in his career, he was national security advisor to United States Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) while he was Democratic Whip, minority leader and then majority leader of the United States Senate.

Verma has also served as vice chairman of The Asia Group, partner and senior counselor at Steptoe & Johnson LLP, and senior counselor at the Albright Stonebridge Group. He is a veteran of the United States Air Force, where he served on active duty as a judge advocate. He earned a BS degree at Lehigh University, a JD cum laude at American University, an LL.M. with distinction at Georgetown University Law Center, and a Ph.D. at Georgetown University. He is the recipient of numerous awards and decorations, including the distinguished service medal from the department of state, the international affairs fellowship from the council on foreign relations and the meritorious service medal from the United States Air Force. He was appointed to the President’s intelligence advisory board and is a former member of the weapons of mass destruction and terrorism commission. He serves as a trustee of The Ford Foundation, and is on numerous other boards, including the National Endowment for Democracy and Lehigh University.

Indiaspora, a non-profit organisation of global Indian origin leaders, has released the following statement in response to the announcement of President Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s nomination of Verma for deputy secretary of state for management and resources: “In nominating Ambassador Verma to this very senior state department role, President Biden and Secretary Blinken have made an inspired choice.” In the statement, Indiaspora pointed out that because of his ample high level experience in the executive and legislative branches of government, his diplomatic vantage point as the 25th United States Ambassador to India, where he was at the helm one of the largest US missions in the world including four consulates across India and nearly every agency of the US government, and his international private sector leadership background as a partner at the global law firm of Steptoe & Johnson LLP and as senior counselor to the Albright Stonebridge Group, Verma is exactly the right person to serve the country in the top echelons of the state department.