Retired career diplomat Vijay Kumar Nambiar was on Tuesday appointed as Deputy National Security Advisor, a newly-created post, and included in the National Security Council as its secretary.

In another key posting, the government brought in senior IFS officer Talmiz Ahmed as the Petroleum Ministry's pointsman for India's energy diplomacy, appointing him as additional secretary in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas for four  years, an official release here said.

The appointment of Nambiar, a former ambassador to China, assumes significance in view of preparations being made by New Delhi and Beijing [Images] to address their border issues ahead of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's visit to India next month.

India had appointed Brajesh Mishra, another career diplomat, during the erstwhile National Democratic Alliance rule, and after UPA came to power, the responsibility was given to former Foreign Secretary and late National Security Advisor J N Dixit to discuss the border issue with Chinese special representatives.

Since the death of Dixit in January this year, Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran was taking care of the responsibility Mishra and Dixit had handled. Saran in fact is now in Beijing to attend the foreign secretary-level Joint Working Group
meeting to discuss the vexed border issue among other things.

Nambiar, considered an expert on China, is tipped to be engaged in talks with Beijing for resolution of the boundary
issue.

His tenure is for two years, an official release said.

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