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CHURKIN, Vitaly Ivanovich

Current Permanent Representative (Ambassador) of the Russian Federation to the United Nations

Vitaly Ivanovich Churkin (Виталий Иванович Чуркин) is the current permanent representative of Russia to the United Nations. Since 1974, Churkin has served at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Soviet Union and Russia. In 1992, he became the deputy minister of foreign affairs of the Russian Federation. In 1994 Churkin was appointed the Russian ambassador to Belgium and the representative of Russia to NATO. In 1998, he was made Russian ambassador to Canada. In 2003, he was appointed as special envoy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, and in 2006 - the constant representative of Russia at the United Nations.

Vitaly Churkin was born on February 21st, 1952 in Moscow. In 1974 he completed his studies at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Soviet Union (more commonly abbreviated as MGIMO).

Following his graduation, Churkin began his career as a reviewer in the Department of Translations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Soviet Union. In 1975 he received a diplomatic rank of senior reviewer, and in 1976 - attaché. From 1979 to 1982 Churkin worked in the rank of third secretary in the Department of the United States of America at the Soviet Foreign Ministry. From 1982 to 1987 he was posted in the Soviet embassy in the USA. Overseas, Churkin was originally given the diplomatic rank of second secretary, while in 1986, he was made first secretary of the embassy of the Soviet Union.

In 1987 Churkin has returned to the Soviet Union, occupying the position of reviewer of the international department of the Central Committee of the CPSU. From 1989 to 1990, within the rank of advisor, Churkin worked as the Press Secretary of the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the USSR Eduard Shevardnadze. In 1990 Churkin became the head of the Department of Information at the Soviet Ministry (since 1991 - the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia) and a member of the foreign policy department board.

In April, 1992, Churkin became the deputy minister of foreign affairs of the Russian Federation under Andrei Kozyrev. For the first time in the history of Russian diplomacy, Churkin allowed for regular open briefings with foreign journalists. Moreover, from the summer of 1992 until October 1994 Churkin served as the special representative of the President of the Russian Federation on the Balkans and was engaged in negotiations between participants of the Bosnian conflict and the West.

On October 3rd, 1994, Churkin has been appointed as the Ambassador of the Russian Federation in Belgium and the representative of Russia to NATO. On August, 26th, 1998 he headed the Russian diplomatic mission in Canada. Since June 2003,Churkin worked as the special envoy for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation. He was the chairman of committee of senior officials for the international intergovernmental organisation of the Arctic Council and tackled issues concerning preservation of the environment and maintenance of a sustainable development of subpolar areas.

On April 8th, 2006, Churkin was appointed as the permanent representative (ambassador) of Russia at the United Nations.

In December, 2007 Churkin, speaking with "Kommersant" newspaper about the reasons of disagreement of Russia with the possibility of unilateral declaration of independence of Kosovo, warned that "the dangerous chain reaction" resulting in any region or country where separatism exists.

In July, 2008 Russia brought to the UN Security Council a draft resolution with the requirement for "immediate signing of documents on non-acceptance of force in the Georgian-Abkhazian and Georgian-Ossetian conflicts." Subsequently, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia directly accused Georgia for the first time of aggression against South Ossetia and participation in acts of terrorism in Abkhazia. In turn, representatives of the Georgian parliament declared their intention to change the format of presence of the Russian peacemakers in a conflict zone. In its own turn, the speaker of the Georgian parliament David Bakradze declared, "Georgia will rise before necessity of acceptance of unilateral actions concerning peacemakers." Nevertheless, the resolution has not been accepted.

At the beginning of August, 2008 the situation became aggravated: military operations against South Ossetia during which time Georgian armies entered on territory of the de facto republic, and its capital Tskhinvali began. Georgia defined the event as an operation on the constitutional restoration of order in a zone of conflict [6]. On the request of Russia the UN Security Council spent an extraordinary session in connection with "aggressive actions of Georgia concerning South Ossetia", however a resolution at this session had not been reached. The Security Council has not reached a draft resolution over South Ossetia.

On August 26th, 2008, Churkin announced that Russia has officially informed the UN secretary-general of its recognition of South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent states. On the same day, at a press conference in New York, Churkin declared: "Russia is not going to recognize the independence of Kosovo - you will never wait for this from us."

Churkin is married, has two children. He speaks English, French and Mongolian.

Sources

Lenta.Ru, Profile of Vitaly Ivanovich Churkin (in Russian)

Permanent Mission of the Russian Federation to the United Nations, Home Webpage

Last updated December 29th, 2008