Indian American to serve key administration post in ‘Joe Biden cabinet’

On Wednesday US President Joe Biden declared his intention to choose Indian American Arun Venkataraman to a pivotal position in his administration associated with foreign commercial service. Venkataraman is the candidate for Director-General of the United States and Foreign Commercial Service and Assistant Secretary for Global Markets, Department of Commerce, the White House said.

With 20 years of expertise in advising firms, international companies, and the US government on international trade matters, Venkataraman is now the Counselor to the Secretary of Commerce, notifying the department on trade and other international economic subjects. Before entering the Biden-Harris administration, he was a senior director at Visa, leading global government engagement policy on a series of international policy matters including digital economy, trade, tax, and sanctions.

Venkataraman earlier worked as the trade and investment policy advisor at Steptoe & Johnson LLP, where he advised multinational companies and other organizations on e-commerce, intellectual property rights, and US and foreign trade systems. As the first-ever Director of Policy at the Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration under President Barack Obama, Venkataraman assisted to form the US government’s replies to significant difficulties encountered by companies in the nation in markets around the globe, including China and India, the White House said. While at the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR), he directed the development and implementation of the US-India trade policy as the Director for India, for which he bore the agency’s Kelly Award for exceptional performance and remarkable administration.

Read more; “Narendra Modi completes 7 years as Prime Minister” ; Will his dream run at the political campaign continue?

Venkataraman also served as the associate general counsel, representing the United States in litigation before the World Trade Organization (WTO) and mediations on international trade treaties. Before joining the USTR, Venkataraman was a legal officer at the WTO, advising the organization on an extensive series of problems put in claims of trade conflicts between nations. He started his profession as a law clerk for Judge Jane A Restani at the US Court of International Trade. He holds a JD from the Columbia Law School, a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, and a BA from the Tufts University.