List of ambassadors of Russia to Albania

Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Albania
Emblem of the Russian Foreign Ministry
Incumbent
Mikhail Afanasyev [ru]
since 16 September 2019
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Embassy of Russia in Tirana
StyleHis Excellency
The Honourable
Reports toMinister of Foreign Affairs
SeatTirana
AppointerPresident of Russia
Term lengthAt the pleasure of the President
WebsiteEmbassy of Russia in Tirana

The Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Albania is the official representative of the President and the Government of the Russian Federation to the President and the Government of Albania.[1][2][3]

The ambassador and his staff work at large in the Embassy of Russia in Tirana.[4] The post of Russian Ambassador to Albania is currently held by Mikhail Afanasyev [ru], incumbent since 16 September 2019.[5]

History of diplomatic relations

Main article: Albania–Russia relations

Attempts to establish diplomatic relations at the mission level between the Soviet Union and Albania began after the June Revolution in 1924 under the auspices of the Soviet ambassador to Greece Arkady Krakovetsky [ru]. Krakovetsky arrived in Tirana on 16 December 1924, but events overtook him when the Albanian government fell to armed forces that placed Ahmed Bey Zogu in power as president of the Albanian Republic.[6] Relations were finally established in September 1934, with the ambassador to Greece serving as non-resident representative to Albania, but were broken off in April 1939 after the Italian invasion and occupation of Albania.[6]

Diplomatic relations were resumed after the war, with the Soviet government recognising the Democratic Government of Albania on 10 November 1945, which after 1946 became the People's Socialist Republic of Albania.[6] The first Soviet envoy, Dmitry Chuvakhin [ru], presented his credentials on 11 January 1946. After a period of relatively strong relations, disagreements between the Albanian and Soviet governments caused relations to deteriorate sharply in the late 1950s and early 1960s.[6] The Soviets withdrew their embassy in November 1961, and officially suspended diplomatic relations the following month.[6] Relations were only restored after a joint meeting in June-July 1990 between the Soviet and Albanian foreign ministries. The Soviet embassy in Tirana was reopened in February 1991, while the Albanian embassy in Moscow opened in April 1991.[6] With the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Soviet ambassador, Viktor Nerubaylo [ru], continued as representative of the Russian Federation until 1996.[1]

List of representatives (1924 – present)

Representatives of the Soviet Union to Albania (1924 – 1991)

Name Title Appointment Termination Notes
Arkady Krakovetsky [ru] Diplomatic representative January 18 December 1924
Mikhail Kobetsky Diplomatic representative (non-resident) 23 January 1935 28 April 1937
Nikolai Sharonov Diplomatic representative (non-resident) 13 November 1937 7 April 1939
Dmitry Chuvakhin [ru] Envoy 12 December 1945 16 March 1952
Kliment Lyovychkin [ru] Envoy (before August 1953)
Ambassador (after August 1953) 		12 December 1945 7 December 1955
Leonid Krylov [ru] Ambassador 7 December 1955 7 March 1957
Vasily Ivanov [ru] Ambassador 7 March 1957 24 November 1960
Iosif Shikin Ambassador 24 November 1960 21 January 1963 Withdrawn in November 1961
Viktor Nerubaylo [ru] Ambassador 15 February 1991 25 December 1991

Representatives of the Russian Federation to Albania (1991 – present)

Name Title Appointment Termination Notes
Viktor Nerubaylo [ru] Ambassador 25 December 1991 2 November 1996
Igor Saprykin [ru] Ambassador 2 November 1996 26 July 2000
Vladimir Tokin [ru] Ambassador 26 July 2000 26 August 2005
Alexander Prishchepov Ambassador 26 August 2005 28 January 2010
Leonid Abramov [ru] Ambassador 28 January 2010 10 July 2014
Aleksandr Karpushin [ru] Ambassador 10 July 2014 16 September 2019
Mikhail Afanasyev [ru] Ambassador 16 September 2019

References

  1. ^ a b Албания (in Russian). Справочник по истории Коммунистической партии и Советского Союза 1898 - 1991. Archived from the original on 2014-11-05. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
  2. ^ Миссия - Посольство СССР в Албании (in Russian). Справочник по истории Коммунистической партии и Советского Союза 1898 - 1991. Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
  3. ^ МПОСЛЫ РОССИЙСКОЙ ФЕДЕРАЦИИ В СТРАНАХ ЕВРОПЫ (in Russian). Worldwide Historical Project. Archived from the original on 2011-09-28. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
  4. ^ "Посольство Российской Федерации в Албании" (in Russian). Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Russia). Retrieved 8 October 2019.
  5. ^ "Чрезвычайный и Полномочный Посол Российской Федерации в Албании" (in Russian). Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Russia). Retrieved 8 October 2019.
  6. ^ a b c d e f "Краткая история российско-албанских отношений" (in Russian). Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Russia). Retrieved 8 October 2019.