S. Jaishankar
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Subrahmanyam Jaishankar (born 9 January 1955), better known as S. Jaishankar, is an Indian politician and retired diplomat of the Indian foreign service (IFS) who is serving as the Minister of external affairs since 2019. He is also the longest-serving Minister for External Affairs to hold the portfolio exclusively, while Jawaharlal Nehru handled it alongside his role as Prime Minister. Jaishankar is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and a member of parliament who sits in the Rajya Sabha. He previously served as the foreign secretary of India from 2015 to 2018. Jaishankar joined the IFS in 1977, and during a diplomatic career spanning over 38 years, served in different capacities in India and abroad, including as a high commissioner to Singapore (2007–2009) and as ambassador to the Czech Republic (2001–2004), China (2009–2013) and the United States (2014–2015). Jaishankar was one of the officials in the ministry of external affairs, the department of atomic energy, and the prime minister's office, who played a key role in negotiating the India–United States Civil Nuclear Agreement. On retirement, Jaishankar received an unusual exemption from the “cooling off period” mandated for all retiring civil servants and joined Tata Sons as president, global corporate affairs. In January 2019, Jaishankar was conferred with the Padma Shri, India's fourth-highest civilian honour. In May 2019, Jaishankar was sworn in as a cabinet minister in the second Modi ministry. He has been credited for maintaining stable relations between India and China even after the Doklam Standoff. Jaishankar is the first former foreign secretary of India to head the ministry of external affairs as cabinet minister.