PHOTO: AFP
Russia’s ambassador to the US dies ‘suddenly’ aged 66
· The Straits Times- Russia’s ambassador to the US, Alexander Darchiev, died “suddenly” at 66 after about 18 months in the post, the foreign ministry said on Nov 11.
- Moscow described him as an “outstanding diplomat” and said no details were given on the cause of death.
- Darchiev was a Russia-US relations specialist, had been ambassador to Canada, and once called Russia’s 2022 attack on Ukraine a “necessary measure”.
MOSCOW - Russia’s ambassador to the United States, Alexander Darchiev, has died “suddenly” at the age of 66, after just one-and-a-half years in the job, Moscow’s foreign ministry announced on Nov 11.
The ministry called Darchiev an “outstanding diplomat, an experienced leader and a kind colleague”.
He was appointed in March 2025.
Moscow did not give more details on the death.
Darchiev previously served as Russia’s ambassador to Canada, between 2014 and 2021.
He was appointed to the US role in 2025, shortly after President Donald Trump returned to power, and several years into Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine that has pitted Moscow against the West.
Darchiev was a specialist in Russia-US relations and was the director of the foreign ministry’s North America department between 2021 and 2024.
In 2022, when Russia attacked Ukraine, Darchiev called the move a “necessary measure”. AFP