US Names S. Paul Kapur as Key Diplomat for South and Central Asia

S. Paul Kapur officially took office as Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs on October 23.

Kapur, previously a visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution and a faculty member at Claremont McKenna College, brings extensive experience in South Asian security and policy, The Caspian Post reports via the US Department of State.

He has authored influential works including Jihad as Grand Strategy and Dangerous Deterrent, and co-authored and edited several publications on nuclear stability and US-India relations.

He succeeds Donald Lu, who held the position from September 2021 to January 2025. The Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs oversees US relations with Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.

Kapur has also directed strategic dialogues between the US and India, shaping policy discussions on defense, security, and regional cooperation.