New Delhi: Senior diplomat Pawan Kapoor was on Monday appointed as India's ambassador to Russia, considered a high-profile posting due to the strategic nature of ties between the two countries.

Kapoor, a 1990-batch officer of the Indian Foreign Service, is presently Ambassador of India to the United Arab Emirates.

He is expected to take up the assignment shortly, the Ministry of External Affairs said.

He succeeds diplomat D Bala Venkatesh Varma.

Russia has been a longstanding and time-tested partner for India. Development of India-Russia relations has been a key pillar of India's foreign policy.

PTI