He had previously served as official spokesperson of India's Ministry of External Affairs from January 2012 to April 2015 and was Indian representative at IAEA from 2006 to 2011.

[5] In his distinguished career spanning over 34 years, Akbaruddin has served in different capacities in India and abroad, starting his first foreign assignment in Cairo where he also learned Arabic.

[6] Akbaruddin was the official spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs of India from January 2012 to April 2015 and was succeeded by Vikas Swarup.

[12] In November 2015, Akbaruddin was appointed as India's permanent representative to the United Nations in New York, succeeding Asoke Kumar Mukerji.

[19] Syed Akbaruddin was born in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh (Now Telangana State) on 27 April 1960 to Professor Syed Bashiruddin, formerly the head of the Department of Journalism and Communication at Osmania University, who headed the department for many years and served as Indian ambassador to Qatar, vice-chancellor of Dr B R Ambedkar Open University and director of the research wing of the Film and Television Institute of India in Pune, and Prof. (Dr.) Zeba Bashiruddin, who was a Professor in the English department at Sri Sathya Sai University, Prasanthi Nilayam campus.