Portrait of the new Russian Ambassador to the United States

(Baonghean.vn) - On August 21, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree appointing Deputy Foreign Minister Antoli Antonov as Russia's Ambassador to the United States, replacing Mr. Sergei Kislyak.

New Russian Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the US Antoly Ivanovich Antonov. Photo: Ria Novosti

The Kremlin announced: "Appointed Antoly Ivanovich Antonov as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Russia to the United States and Permanent Observer of Russia to the US National Organizations in Washington."

Antonov is a career diplomat, considered a hardliner in relations with the West. He was born in 1955, in the city of Omber, Siberia; graduated from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations in 1978, fluent in English and Burmese.

During 2004-2011, Antonov was the Director of the Department of Foreign Affairs in charge of Security and Disarmament. During 2011-2016, he served as Deputy Minister of Defense, also responsible for international cooperation.

And then, President Vladimir Putin transferred him to the position of Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs on November 28, 2016. At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he is responsible for military-political security issues.

Presenting his views on Russia-US relations, Mr. Antonov always expressed his belief that Washington and Moscow will definitely cooperate actively.

According to Mr. Antonov, Russia and the United States are two permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, so they shoulder special responsibility for world peace and security. Moreover, both countries have many things in common in the strategic goals and tasks of counter-terrorism and non-proliferation of nuclear weapons.

Deputy Foreign Minister Anatoly Antonov served as Deputy Defense Minister of Russia for a very long time, and this obviously has an advantage in the current situation of Russia-US relations that are on a "downhill" path.

However, the immediate task is to find a solution to improve this bilateral relationship. Accordingly, the new Ambassador Antonov emphasized the need to convince his American colleagues that building a friendly, neighborly relationship with mutual respect and equality meets the interests of both sides.

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(According to Ria Novosti)