Bangladesh is sending one of its most experienced career diplomats to New Delhi at a time when both sides are looking to put bilateral ties on a more constructive footing.Asad Alam Siam, Bangladesh’s serving Foreign Secretary, has been appointed the country’s next High Commissioner to India, succeeding M Riaz Hamidullah. India has given its formal approval for his appointment, clearing the way for him to take charge of the Bangladesh mission in New Delhi in the coming weeks.The appointment gives New Delhi a diplomat who has spent more than three decades in Bangladesh’s foreign service and has worked across bilateral, regional and multilateral diplomacy.A career diplomat since 1995Siam joined the Bangladesh Foreign Service in 1995. He is an alumnus of the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), where he studied architecture, and later obtained an MBA from Maastricht School of Management in the Netherlands.His career has taken him through a wide range of diplomatic assignments. He served in Bangladesh’s missions in Jakarta and Bangkok early in his career and later became the country’s first Consul General in Milan, Italy. He also served as Assistant High Commissioner in Manchester, UK.At the Bangladesh Foreign Ministry in Dhaka, Siam held several influential positions, including Chief of Protocol, Director General of the Europe and EU Wing, Rector of the Foreign Service Academy and Inspector General of Missions. He also served in the offices of the Foreign Secretary and Foreign Minister.Experience across capitalsSiam’s diplomatic postings have covered both major bilateral relationships and multilateral institutions.He served as Bangladesh’s Ambassador to the Philippines from 2017 to 2021, with concurrent accreditation to Palau. He later became Ambassador to Austria, with concurrent accreditation to Hungary and Slovenia, and Permanent Representative to the UN offices in Vienna and the OPEC Fund.In December 2024, Siam joined Bangladesh’s embassy in Washington as Ambassador to the United States. He held the post for less than a year before returning to Dhaka to take charge as Foreign Secretary in June 2025.His multilateral experience includes representing Bangladesh at the UN offices in Vienna and the OPEC Fund, as well as serving as an alternate permanent representative to UNESCAP in Bangkok. He has also represented Dhaka in various bilateral, regional and multilateral negotiations.From Foreign Secretary to DelhiSiam assumed office as Bangladesh’s Foreign Secretary on June 20, 2025. His elevation came after his stint as ambassador in Washington and placed him at the centre of Dhaka’s foreign-policy machinery.Now, after just over a year as foreign secretary, he is being moved to New Delhi as Bangladesh’s top diplomatic representative.The India posting comes as Dhaka and New Delhi seek to rebuild regular engagement following a period of strained relations. Current discussions also include a possible visit by Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to India, with the two sides looking at dates for a visit later this year, according to reports.India’s Ministry of External Affairs has said it wants a “positive, constructive and forward-looking” relationship with Bangladesh and is ready to discuss bilateral issues through existing structured mechanisms.Why his profile mattersSiam’s background gives him experience in several areas likely to matter in New Delhi — high-level diplomatic coordination, political reporting, protocol, multilateral negotiations and managing relations with major capitals.His appointment also follows India’s decision earlier this year to appoint former Union minister Dinesh Trivedi as its High Commissioner to Bangladesh, adding to the senior-level diplomatic changes on both sides.For Siam, however, the New Delhi assignment will be different from many of his previous postings.As High Commissioner, he will be operating at the centre of one of Bangladesh’s most consequential bilateral relationships, with a long list of sensitive issues on the table and a stated interest on both sides in keeping diplomatic channels open.