The US Senate has confirmed Indian-origin academic S Paul Kapur as Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, replacing Donald Lu. His confirmation came through a vote on October 7, despite the ongoing government shutdown.The White House confirmed the appointment in a post on X, stating, “Paul Kapur, of California, as Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs.”Kapur was among 107 nominees approved by the Senate and will now lead America’s diplomatic engagement with key South and Central Asian nations, including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan.Kapur, who earlier worked on US-India relations, was nominated by the Trump administration in February.

Who is Paul Kapur?

S Paul Kapur was born in New Delhi to an Indian father and an American mother. Kapur is a respected academic with a long career studying South Asian security and foreign policy. He currently serves as a professor at the US Naval Postgraduate School and is also a visiting fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution.A seasoned voice on regional geopolitics, Kapur previously served on the State Department’s Policy Planning Staff during the earlier Trump administration, where he worked on Indo-Pacific strategy and US-India relations. He holds a PhD from the University of Chicago and a bachelor’s degree from Amherst College. Kapur’s scholarly work reflects deep expertise in South Asia’s nuclear strategy and security dynamics. He is the author of Jihad as Grand Strategy: Islamist Militancy, National Security, and the Pakistani State and Dangerous Deterrent: Nuclear Weapons Proliferation and Conflict in South Asia, among others. His research often argues that Pakistan’s “use of jihadist groups is a deliberate state policy, not a side effect of instability, suggesting a tougher US stance toward Islamabad under his leadership.”Kapur also co-authored India, Pakistan, and the Bomb: Debating Nuclear Stability in South Asia and co-edited The Challenges of Nuclear Security: US and Indian Perspectives (2024). His writings have appeared in leading journals and outlets such as International Security, Security Studies, Asian Survey, The Wall Street Journal, and The National Interest.