James Appathurai

James Appathurai (born 7 August 1968, Toronto)^[2] is a Canadian diplomat and academic. He is the current NATO Deputy Assistant Secretary General for Innovation, Hybrid and Cyber, a position he was appointed to in September 2021.^[3][4]

James Appathurai
Appathurai wearing the Order of the Golden Fleece in 2021
Nationality	Canadian
Education	University of Toronto (BA) University of Amsterdam (MAIR)[1]
Occupation	Diplomat

Appathurai has worked for NATO since 1998 and was its spokesperson from 2004 to 2010.^[1][5] From December 2010 until April 2022, Appathurai was the Deputy Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs and Security Policy.^[1][6][7][8] During this time, he took on the role of Special Representative for the Caucasus and Central Asia,^{[9][10][11][12]} and held discussions with the government of Georgia about potential NATO accession.^[13][14] In 2021, President of Georgia Salome Zurabishvili awarded Appathurai the Order of the Golden Fleece for his contribution to Georgia–NATO relations.^[15]

Appathurai was one of three NATO representatives at the 2024 Bilderberg Conference, an annual exclusive gathering of the European and North American political and business elite.^[16][17]