The ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Benin is the official representative of the president and the government of the Russian Federation to the president and the government of Benin.
The ambassador and his staff work at large in the Embassy of Russia in Cotonou. The post of Russian ambassador to Benin is currently held by , incumbent since 7 August 2017. Since 1992 the Russian ambassador to Benin has been concurrently accredited to Togo.
History of diplomatic relations
Diplomatic relations at the mission level between the Soviet Union and what was then the Republic of Dahomey were first established in June 1962, and carried out through the Soviet embassy in Togo. The first Soviet ambassador, , the incumbent ambassador to Togo, was dual accreditation on 10 August 1963. The Soviet embassy in Dahomey opened in May 1966, with appointed ambassador solely to Dahomey on 4 May 1966. The Republic of Dahomey was renamed the Republic of Benin in 1975, and with the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Soviet ambassador, Vitaly Zhuravlyov, continued as representative of the Russian Federation until 1992. Zhuravlyov's successor, , was appointed as ambassador to Benin and concurrently to Togo.
List of representatives (1963–present) Soviet Union to the Republic of Dahomey (1963–1975) NameTitleAppointmentTerminationNotesAmbassador10 August 1963 4 May 1966Concurrently as ambassador to TogoAmbassador4 May 1966 17 August 1968 First accredited only to, and based in, DahomeyAmbassador17 August 1968 11 November 1969 Ambassador11 November 1969 13 April 1975 Ambassador13 April 1975 30 November 1975
Soviet Union to the Republic of Benin (1975–1991) NameTitleAppointmentTerminationNotesAmbassador30 November 1975 8 April 1979Ambassador8 April 197929 August 1985 Ambassador29 August 1985 24 July 1990 Vitaly ZhuravlyovAmbassador24 July 1990 25 December 1991
Russian Federation to the Republic of Benin (1991–present) NameTitleAppointmentTerminationNotesVitaly ZhuravlyovAmbassador25 December 1991 22 April 1992 Ambassador22 April 1992 8 May 1998Ambassador8 May 199817 July 2002 Vladimir TimoshenkoAmbassador17 July 2002 30 June 2008 Yury GrashchenkovAmbassador30 June 2008 31 May 2013Ambassador31 May 20137 August 2017Ambassador7 August 2017
References