Gauri Khandekar is a researcher at FRIDE’s office in Brussels, as well head of Fride's Asia Programme: Agora Asia-Europe.

Her research focuses on the spectrum of EU Strategic Partnerships and EU-Asia relations, specialising also on EU-India relations. Prior to joining FRIDE, she has worked at the European Commission’s DG Relex (India, Nepal, Bhutan Unit) and the European Parliament (MEP Graham Watson, chief of the EP’s India Delegation). She has a wide range of professional experience on European and international affairs, having worked for a consultancy firm and a communications enterprise in Brussels, the United Nations Headquarters in New York and a development and social welfare NGO in India. Gauri has also conducted research at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) Pacific Forum in Honolulu, USA on the US's Asia policies and implications for the EU.

Gauri holds two masters degrees in European Studies with distinction from the Institute of Political Sciences in Lille (France) and the College of Europe in Bruges (Belgium), of which Gauri is the first ever and only Indian graduate. Her research interests further lie in security and counter-terrorism, energy, institutional developments, democracy and multilateralism.