NAJMUDDIN Shaikh, a soft-spoken diplomat who served in some of the toughest capitals in the wo­­r­ld in incredibly trying times, pa­s­sed away at his Karachi home ear­ly on Friday morning. He was 86.

Shaikh’s storied career in the Foreign Service of Pakistan saw him rise to the position of foreign secretary. While he managed his diplomatic assignments with ap­­lomb, post-retirement he remained active in academia, along with contributing to several think tanks and writing in various publications.

Ambassador Shaikh was born in Hyderabad, Sindh in 1939 and would go on to attain a BCom deg­ree from the University of Sindh, while obtaining an MA from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts Univer­sity, Massachusetts, US. Shaikh would kick off his diplomatic career in 1961, at the height of the Cold War. Despite the challenges, and the complex global circumstances, he rose in the ranks, and served Pakistan with distinction.

Early in his diplomatic career, Najmuddin Shaikh served in Moscow, Tehran, Baghdad and Washington DC. He would get first-hand knowledge of Pakistan’s complicated involvement in the Afghan ‘Jihad’, as he participated in the Geneva negotiations on Afghanistan, in his capacity as additional secretary for Soviet Union, East Europe, Afghanistan and policy planning.

His diplomatic career began at the height of the Cold War, and had a front-row seat when the Iron Curtain eventually fell, the Eastern bloc collapsed and the ‘free’ West declared victory

In fact, Mr Shaikh had a front-row seat as the Iron Curtain fell, the Eastern bloc collapsed and the ‘free’ West declared victory in the Cold War. This was facilitated by his ambassadorial assignments to West Germany (1989-90) and the US (1990-91).

He would also serve as Pakis­t­a­n’s ambassador to Iran from 1992 to 1994. From 1994 to 1997 he would serve as foreign secretary, sitting at the top of Pakis­t­an’s diplomatic pyramid, and obs­erving very closely both the internal and external factors that shape this country’s foreign policy.

Post-retirement, he would take up additional missions and visited various foreign capitals in his capacity as Pakistan’s special envoy. He also participated in Track II initiatives, specifically relating to Pakistan-India ties.

After life in the Foreign Serv­ice, Najmuddin Shaikh would contribute to academia and the think tank circuit in Pakistan, guiding juniors and students with poise about how to navigate the choppy waters of foreign policy and multilateral diplomacy.

He served as chancellor of the Karachi-based Institute of Business Management, and would also head the Global and Regional Studies Centre think tank at the same educational institution. Mr Shaikh would often lecture students at the University of Karachi while taking part in discussions and seminars at the Pakistan Institute of International Affairs.

According to the Foreign Offi­­ce, he also served on the board of governors of the Institute of Stra­tegic Studies, Islamabad, and was a founding member of the Sindh Council of Foreign Relations.

He would respond to prickly questions about sensitive topics with composure, eschewing emotion and deconstructing the issue coolly and dispassionately. He also wrote, primarily on foreign policy, for several papers and journals, including this publication.

Reflecting on his career during an interview to Newsline in 2016, he said that during his tenure as foreign secretary ties with India were strained, and that not talking to our eastern neighbour was “not helpful”. As for what constitutes ex­­­ternal policy, in the same interview he observed that formulation of foreign policy was a “whole [of] government effort” and that “dip­l­o­­macy is about reconciling differe­n­­­ces and creating a modus vivendi”.

In a statement, the Foreign Office eulogised his services as foreign secretary, saying he brought “visionary leadership to the role, shaping foreign policy with strategic foresight and mentoring generations of diplomats who followed in his footsteps”.

Shaikh was laid to rest at the DHA Phase VIII graveyard on Friday afternoon. He is survived by his wife of over 50 years, Raana Shaikh; his two children, Nadir and Nermeen; his daughter-in-law Sobia and two grandchildren, Isaad and Lyali; his brothers Riaz, Siraj, Ajaz, and Fareed, and sisters, Waheeda and Rafat.

Published in Dawn, March 29th, 2025