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Russia designates ‘Mr Yes’ former FM as foreign agent | Russia designates ‘Mr Yes’ former FM as foreign agent |
(1 day later) | |
Andrey Kozyrev, who was Moscow’s top diplomat in the 1990s, had been given the nickname over his pro-Western stance | Andrey Kozyrev, who was Moscow’s top diplomat in the 1990s, had been given the nickname over his pro-Western stance |
The Russian Justice Ministry has designated the country’s former foreign minister, Andrey Kozyrev, a foreign agent. The decision was announced on its website on Friday. | |
Kozyrev, who was Russia’s top diplomat between 1990 and 1996, was branded ‘Mr Yes’ by the media over his alleged willingness to agree to any terms suggested to Moscow by the US and its allies. The nickname is a reversal of the one given to long-time Soviet Foreign Minister Andrey Gromyko, who had been called ‘Mr No’ in the West for always firmly standing his ground. | Kozyrev, who was Russia’s top diplomat between 1990 and 1996, was branded ‘Mr Yes’ by the media over his alleged willingness to agree to any terms suggested to Moscow by the US and its allies. The nickname is a reversal of the one given to long-time Soviet Foreign Minister Andrey Gromyko, who had been called ‘Mr No’ in the West for always firmly standing his ground. |
Kozyrev, 74, currently resides in Miami. According to open-source data, he serves as vice president at international drug producer and developer, ICN Pharmaceuticals. | |
The former foreign minister was among three people added to the list. The roster includes individuals who are deemed to be receiving financial support from hostile entities abroad or working to advance the interests of unfriendly external actors. | |
The ministry said in a statement that Kozyrev had “disseminated false information about decisions made by the Russian authorities and the policies they pursue, as well as false information aimed at creating a negative image of the Russian Armed Forces.” | The ministry said in a statement that Kozyrev had “disseminated false information about decisions made by the Russian authorities and the policies they pursue, as well as false information aimed at creating a negative image of the Russian Armed Forces.” |
He “interacts with foreign platforms and lives outside Russia,” the statement read. | He “interacts with foreign platforms and lives outside Russia,” the statement read. |
A representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry told Gazeta.ru that Kozyrev being classed a foreign agent is “a logical development.” He recalled that the former minister had inspired a special term in Russian diplomacy, “Kozyrevshina,” which is used to describe “a policy of rejection of national interests in favor of foreign countries.” | |
After Moscow started its special military operation in Ukraine in February 2022, Kozyrev called on Russian diplomats around the world to resign in protest, a move widely seen in Russia as undermining national unity during a critical time. Only one employee headed his call. | |
In February, he gave an interview to Ukrainian journalist Dmitry Gordon, in which he stated that Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky should continue calling on the West to deliver more weapons, as Kiev needs to regain the territory it lost to Moscow. Gordon has been sentenced in absentia by a Russian court to 14 years behind bars for inciting terrorism and spreading false information. | |
A diplomatic source told RIA Novosti a few years ago that during his time in office, Kozyrev lobbied for Moscow to give the Kuril Islands to Japan. | |
The Russian Military Historical Society also accused the former diplomat of “betraying” his country by making one-sided concessions to the Baltic States during the withdrawal of the Russian military from Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania in 1994. |
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