Famous Russian Diplomats

Soviet diplomat Maksim Litvinov believed in disarmament and was behind the adoption of the Kellogg–Briand Pact and the Litvinov Protocol. He had also been the Soviet Ambassador to the US and later served as the deputy commissar for foreign affairs. He was the grandfather of Russian-American author Pavel Litvinov.

Currently the director of the Information and Press department of Russia’s Foreign Affairs ministry, Maria Zakharova is from a family of diplomats. Putin’s top aide is also known for her sarcastic comments on sensitive issues on various talk shows and for her seductive selfies and trademark red lipstick.

Soviet lawyer, diplomat, and KGB chief Vladimir Kryuchkov is best remembered for his involvement in the 1991 coup against Mikhail Gorbachev. Born to working-class Stalin-supporting parents, he initially worked with the Communist Youth League. He misinterpreted the Able Archer 83 conflict simulation as the beginning of a nuclear attack.

Russian politician Vitaly Churkin began his career as a child actor at age 11, with the Soviet film The Blue Notebook. He grew up to lead his county as an ambassador to Canada, Belgium, and the UN. His sudden and mysterious death at work in his New York office stunned everyone.

Russian playwright Alexandr Griboyedov is best remembered for his comedy Gore ot uma, or Woe from Wit. He participated in the Decembrist revolt and even got arrested once. He was the Russian Ambassador to Iran and died at the hands of an Iranian mob during an attack on the embassy.

Soviet politician Yuri Brezhnev was a member of CPSU and held a seat in the party’s Central Committee. He served as First Deputy Minister of Foreign Trade. Allegations of embezzlement and corruption compelled Brezhnev to retire and become a pensioner following which he was arrested and his belongings were confiscated. He was the son of influential Soviet politician Leonid Brezhnev.

Russian politician and former foreign affairs minister Igor Ivanov has also led the Security Council of the Russian Federation as its secretary. He is equipped with a PhD in history, has worked as a researcher, and has published several books on foreign affairs. He now teaches at the MGIMO University.

Born to an affluent landowner, Fyodor Tyutchev was homeschooled and grew up to represent his country as a diplomat in Germany. A nationalist and Pan-Slavist, he also became one of the most-quoted Russian poets. His love poems were inspired by his affair with his daughter’s governess.

Soviet politician Anatoly Dobrynin, who had been the Soviet ambassador to the US, initially worked as an aircraft engineer. He later held several important posts at the Moscow foreign office. He was key to the Soviet-US relationship during the Cold War and later led the international department of the Russian Communist Party’s Secretariat.

The son of an affluent Crimean Karaite merchant, Adolph Joffe grew up to be a Bolshevik politician and a revolutionary. He later represented the Soviet Union as its ambassador to China and Austria. A lifelong supporter of Leon Trotsky, he committed suicide after Trotsky was expelled from the Communist Party.

Russian politician and former foreign minister Sergey Sazonov had also worked in the Russian embassies of Washington, D.C., London, and the Vatican. He was also responsible for strengthening Russia’s ties with France, Great Britain, and Germany. In his later years, he opposed Bolshevism and died in Nice, while writing his memoirs.

Karl Nesselrode was a Russian German diplomat remembered for his service as the Foreign Minister of the Russian Empire from 1816 to 1856. Nesselrode played a major role during the negotiations with the USA, which defined the boundary between the Oregon Country and Russian America; Nesselrode was a plenipotentiary during the negotiations that culminated in the Russo-American Treaty of 1824.