Russia's ambassador to the United States, Alexander Darchiev, has died suddenly at the age of 66, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced on Wednesday. No cause of death was given.
The ministry said in a statement that Darchiev "passed away suddenly" on November 11, describing him as "an outstanding diplomat, an experienced leader, a kind colleague and a mentor" and "an exceptional professional and a distinguished expert on the United States" who served "in one of the most demanding areas of Russian foreign policy." Moscow provided no further details about his death.
Darchiev had served as Moscow's envoy to Washington since March 2025, appointed shortly after President Donald Trump returned to power, during a period of icy relations between the two superpowers caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. He previously headed the Foreign Ministry's North America Department and served as ambassador to Canada from 2014 to 2021. Born into a Soviet diplomatic family in Hungary, he entered the diplomatic service in 1992.
He had a reputation for blunt verbal attacks against the West. Weeks after the invasion of Ukraine, he told the Interfax news agency in March 2022: "Apparently, Washington will need time to get used to the fact that its hegemony is in the past, and will have to reckon with the national interests of Russia, which has its own sphere of influence and responsibility."
News of his death came amid a new U.S.-mediated push to end the war in Ukraine, with American, Russian and Ukrainian diplomats taking part in talks in Abu Dhabi. Following two days of talks there, U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are scheduled to travel to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin.
