Speaker biographies

Montek Singh Ahluwalia is deputy chairman of the government of India’s planning commission. The planning commission was established in 1950 with the aim of improving the standard of living, increasing production, and expanding economic opportunities. Since its inception, the planning commission has played an integral role in the Indian government’s economic policy decision-making. Previously, Mr. Ahluwalia served as director of the International Monetary Fund Independent Evaluation Office in Washington, D.C. Prior positions he has held within the Indian government include finance secretary, commerce secretary, and special secretary to the prime minister. Mr. Ahluwalia also served as chief of the income distribution division within the International Development Research Centre of the World Bank.

Danielle Pletka is the vice president for foreign and defense policy studies at AEI. Her research areas include the Middle East (including Iran, Iraq, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict), South Asia (India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan), terrorism, and weapons proliferation. While at AEI, Ms. Pletka has developed a conference series on rebuilding post-Saddam Iraq, a project on democracy for the Arab world, a roundtable of experts to discuss global energy security, and a project to develop bilateral relations between India and the United States. She recently served as a member of the congressionally mandated Task Force on the United Nations, established by the United States Institute of Peace. Before coming to AEI, she served for ten years as a senior professional staff member for the Near East and South Asia on the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. Ms. Pletka has also been a journalist based in Washington, D.C. and the Middle East.

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