Famous Russian Diplomats

Sergey Lavrov is a Russian diplomat and politician. Since 2004, he has been serving as the foreign minister of Russia. An alumnus of the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO), he began his diplomatic career in 1972. Considered a brilliant diplomat, he was later appointed to the post of minister of foreign affairs. He is multi-lingual. 

Vyacheslav Molotov was a Soviet diplomat and politician. An Old Bolshevik, Molotov played a key role in bringing the Bolsheviks to power. He also played a major role during the Great Purge, signing 373 execution lists. Molotov was portrayed by actor Michael Palin in the 2017 political satire black comedy film The Death of Stalin.

Alexandra Kollontai was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and diplomat. She served as the People's Commissar for Welfare in Lenin’s government. A powerful figure, she became the first woman in history to become an official member of a governing cabinet. She was also one of the few women to play a prominent role during the Russian Revolution. 

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 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.

Former Russian prime minister Yevgeny Primakov had begun his career as a journalist for Pravda. He later went on multiple espionage missions as a KGB official, using the codename MAKSIM. He also denied reports that his father was a victim of the Stalinist purge and that he had changed his surname.

Russian politician Dmitry Rogozin has not just been the Russian ambassador to NATO but has also headed the Russian space agency Roscosmos as its director general. He also led the nationalist political party Rodina and has been Russia’s deputy prime minister for Defense and Space Industry.

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.

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.

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.

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.