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Yevgeny Primakov

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In this name that follows Eastern Slavic naming customs, the patronymic is Maksimovich and the family name is Primakov.

Yevgeny Maksimovich Primakov[a] (29 October 1929 – 26 June 2015, Russian pronunciation: [jɪvˈɡʲenʲɪj mɐˈksʲiməvʲɪtɕ prʲɪmɐˈkof]) was a Russian politician and diplomat who served as Prime Minister of Russia from 1998 to 1999. During his long career, he also served as Foreign Minister, Speaker of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union, and chief of the intelligence service. Primakov was an academician (Arabist) and a member of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Yevgeny Primakov
Евгений Примаков
Primakov in 2002
Prime Minister of Russia
In office
11 September 1998 – 12 May 1999
PresidentBoris Yeltsin
First Deputy
Preceded byViktor Chernomyrdin (acting)
Succeeded bySergei Stepashin
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office
9 January 1996 – 11 September 1998
PresidentBoris Yeltsin
Preceded byAndrei Kozyrev
Succeeded byIgor Ivanov
Director of the Foreign Intelligence Service
In office
26 December 1991 – 9 January 1996
PresidentBoris Yeltsin
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byVyacheslav Trubnikov
Director of the USSR Central Intelligence Service
In office
6 November 1991 – 26 December 1991
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byPosition abolished
Director of the KGB First Chief Directorate
In office
30 September 1991 – 6 November 1991
Preceded byLeonid Shebarshin
Succeeded byPosition abolished
Chairman of the Soviet of the Union of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR
In office
3 June 1989 – 31 March 1990
Preceded byYury Khristoradnov
Succeeded byIvan Laptev
Personal details
Born(1929-10-29)29 October 1929
Kiev, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union
Died26 June 2015(2015-06-26) (aged 85)
Moscow, Russia
NationalityRussian
Political partyCommunist Party of the Soviet Union
(1950s–1991)
Independent
(1991–1998, 2002–2015)
Fatherland – All Russia
(1998–2002)
Children
  • Alexander
  • Nana
RelativesYevgeny Primakov Jr. (grandson)
Alma mater
OccupationPolitician, journalist, diplomat, secret agent
AwardsOrder "For Merit to the Fatherland" 1st class Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" 2nd class Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" 3rd class

Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise 4th class Order Dostik 1st class
Central institution membership
Other offices held

Personal life

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Primakov was born in Kyiv in the Ukrainian SSR, and grew up in Tbilisi in the Georgian SSR.

Primakov's father's surname was Nemchenko. He had been imprisoned in the Gulag during the Stalinist purges.[1][2][3][4] Primakov's mother was Jewish, named Anna Yakovlevna Primakova. She worked as an obstetrician and was a cousin of the famous physiologist Yakov Kirshenblat [ru].[5][6][7][8]

Primakov was educated at the Moscow Institute of Oriental Studies, graduating in 1953, and carried out postgraduate work at Moscow State University. He graduated with a degree in Arabic.[9]

His grandson is Yevgeny Primakov Jr. (Russian: Евгений Александрович Примаков), a journalist, TV host, politician and diplomat.

Early career

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From 1956 to 1970, he worked as a journalist for Soviet radio and a Middle Eastern correspondent for Pravda newspaper. During this time, he was sent frequently on intelligence missions to the Middle East and the United States as a KGB co-optee under codename MAKSIM.[10][11] Primakov reportedly may have been coerced into joining the intelligence services.[12]

As a Senior Researcher at the Institute of World Economy and International Relations, Primakov entered into scientific society in 1962. From 30 December 1970 to 1977, he served as deputy director of the Institute of World Economy and International Relations, part of the Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union. In this role he participated in the Dartmouth Conferences alongside, among others, Charles Yost. From 1977 to 1985 he was Director of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the USSR Academy of Sciences. During this time he was also First Deputy Chairman of the Soviet Peace Committee. In 1985 he returned to the Institute of World Economy and International Relations, serving as Director until 1989.[13]

Primakov became involved in national politics in 1989, as the Chairman of the Soviet of the Union, one of two chambers of the Soviet parliament.[14] From 1990 until 1991 he was a member of Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev's Presidential Council of the Soviet Union.[13] He served as Gorbachev's special envoy to Iraq in the run-up to the Persian Gulf War, in which capacity he held talks with President Saddam Hussein to try to convince him to withdraw Iraqi forces from Kuwait.[15][16][17]

Foreign intelligence chief (1991–1996)

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In 1992, Director of Foreign Intelligence Service Yevgeny Primakov admitted that the KGB was behind the Soviet newspaper articles claiming that AIDS was created by the US government.[18]

After the failed August 1991 putsch, Primakov was appointed First Deputy Chairman of the KGB and Director of the KGB First Chief Directorate responsible for foreign intelligence.

After the formation of the Russian Federation, Primakov shepherded the transition of the KGB First Chief Directorate to the control of the Russian Federation government, under the new name Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR). Primakov preserved the old KGB foreign intelligence apparatus under the new SVR label, and led no personnel purges or structural reforms.[19] He served as SVR director from 1991 until 1996.[13]

Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs (1996–1998)

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Primakov served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from January 1996 until September 1998. As foreign minister, he gained respect at home and abroad, with a reputation as a tough but pragmatic supporter of Russia's interests[20] and as an opponent of NATO's expansion into the former Eastern Bloc, though on 27 May 1997, after five months of negotiation with NATO Secretary General Javier Solana, Russia signed the Founding Act,[21][22] which is seen as marking the end of Cold War hostilities. He supported Slobodan Milošević during the Yugoslav Wars.[23]

He was also famously an advocate of multilateralism as an alternative to American global hegemony following the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War. Primakov called for a Russian foreign policy based on low-cost mediation while expanding influence towards the Middle East and the former Soviet republics.[24][25] Called the "Primakov doctrine", beginning in 1999, he promoted Russia, China, and India as a "strategic triangle" to counterbalance the United States. The move was interpreted by some observers as an agreement to fight together against 'colour revolutions' in Central Asia.[26][27][28]

Prime Minister of Russia (1998–1999)

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See also: Yevgeny Primakov's Cabinet

After Yeltsin's bid to reinstate Viktor Chernomyrdin as Prime Minister of Russia was blocked by the State Duma in September 1998, the President turned to Primakov as a compromise figure whom he rightly judged would be accepted by the parliament's majority. As Prime Minister, Primakov was given credit for forcing some very difficult reforms in Russia; most of them, such as the tax reform, became major successes.[29] Following the 1998 harvest, which was the worst in 45 years, coupled with a plummeting ruble, one of Primakov's first actions as Prime Minister, in October 1998, was to appeal to the United States and Canada for food aid, while also appealing to the European Union for economic relief.[30]

While Primakov's opposition to perceived US unilateralism was popular among some Russians, it also led to a breach with the West during the 1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, and isolated Russia during subsequent developments in the former Yugoslavia.[31]

On 24 March 1999, Primakov was heading to Washington, D.C. for an official visit. Flying over the Atlantic Ocean, he learned that NATO had started to bomb Yugoslavia. Primakov decided to cancel the visit, ordered the plane to turn around over the ocean and returned to Moscow in a manoeuvre popularly dubbed "Primakov's Loop".[32][9]

Yeltsin fired Primakov on 12 May 1999, ostensibly over the sluggish pace of the Russian economy. Many analysts believed the firing of Primakov reflected Yeltsin's fear of losing power to a more successful and popular person,[33][34] although sources close to Yeltsin said at the time that the president viewed Primakov as being too close to the Communist Party.[35] Primakov himself would have had good chances as a candidate for the presidency. Primakov had refused to dismiss Communist ministers while the Communist Party was leading the process of preparing unsuccessful impeachment proceedings against the president.[36] Ultimately, Yeltsin resigned at the end of the year and was succeeded by his last prime minister, Vladimir Putin,[37] whom Primakov had tried to fire from his role as head of the FSB when he tapped the phone of the Duma President.[38] Primakov's dismissal was extremely unpopular with the Russian population: according to a poll, 81% of the population did not approve of the decision, and even among the liberal pro-Western party Yabloko supporters, 84% did not approve of the dismissal.[39]

Post-PM career

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After 1988, Primakov held several roles: Academic Secretary of the World Economy and International Relations Division, director of the Institute of World Economy and International Relations and member of the Presidium of the Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union.

Before Yeltsin's resignation, Primakov supported the Fatherland – All Russia electoral faction, which at that time was the major opponent of the pro-Putin Unity, and launched his presidential bid.[40] Initially considered the man to beat, Primakov was rapidly overtaken by the factions loyal to Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in the December 1999 Duma elections.[41] Primakov officially abandoned the presidential race in his TV address on 4 February 2000[42] less than two months before the 26 March presidential elections. Soon he became an adviser to Putin and a political ally.[43] On 14 December 2001, Primakov became President of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, a position he held until 2011.[44]

 
Leader of Fatherland – All Russia Duma faction Yevgeny Primakov meets President Vladimir Putin, 2000

In February and March 2003, he visited Iraq and held talks with Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, as a special representative of President Putin. He passed on a message from Putin calling for Hussein to resign voluntarily.[45] He tried to prevent the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, a move which received some support from several nations opposed to the war. Primakov suggested that Hussein must hand over all Iraq's weapons of mass destruction to the United Nations, among other things. However, Hussein told Primakov that he was confident that nothing would befall him personally[46]—a belief that was later proven incorrect. Primakov later claimed Hussein's execution in 2006 was rushed to prevent him from revealing information on Iraq–United States relations that could embarrass the U.S. government.[47] In a 2006 speech Primakov thundered that: "The collapse of the US policies pursued in Iraq delivered a fatal blow on the American doctrine of unilateralism."[48]

On 26 May 2008, Primakov was elected as a member of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences.[49] In 2009, the University of Niš, Serbia awarded Primakov an honorary doctorate.[50]

In November 2004, Primakov testified in defense of the former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milošević, on trial for war crimes.[51] He had earlier led a Russian delegation that met with Milošević during the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia in March 1999.[52]

Death

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Farewell to Yevgeny Primakov on 29 June 2015

Primakov died in Moscow on June 26, 2015, at the age of 85, after prolonged illness (liver cancer).[53][9] He was buried with military honours at Novodevichy Cemetery.[54] He was lionized in Russia obituaries as "the Russian Kissinger", and President Vladimir Putin said Primakov had made a "colossal contribution to the formation of modern Russia... This is a sad, grievous loss for our society. … Yevgeny's authority was respected both in our country and abroad..."[38] Indeed, "his death occurred at a time when his positions [were] very much the official line and the backbone for Putin's grand strategy."[55]

In honor of Primakov, Primakov Readings was established in October 2015 - an annual international summit aimed at promoting dialogue on current global trends in the world economy, international politics and security among high-ranking experts, diplomats and decision-makers from around the Globe, organized by the Institute of World Economy and International Relations and held in Moscow.[56]

One of his credos was: "Those who do good will be rewarded. Life gets even with those who do bad."[48]

Awards

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Publications

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  • 1979: Anatomy of the Middle East Conflict
  • 2003: A World Challenged: Fighting Terrorism in the Twenty-First Century
  • 2004: Russian Crossroads: Toward the New Millennium
  • 2009: Russia and the Arabs: Behind the Scenes in the Middle East from the Cold War to the Present
  • 2014: Встречи на перекрестках (Meetings at the crossroads)

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Russian: Евге́ний Макси́мович Примако́в, romanized: Yevgeniy Maksimovich Primakov

References

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  1. ^ "Steel and shadows". The Economist. 16 July 2015.
  2. ^ "Can Russia's Yevgeny Primakov shed his past?". The Economist. 17 September 1998.
  3. ^ Russian Crossroads: Toward the New Millennium (2008) by Yevgeny Primakov, pp. 17
  4. ^ "What Was Yevgeny Primakov's Nationality?" (in Russian). 16 December 2021.
  5. ^ Млечин, Леонид (6 April 2019). История внешней разведки. Карьеры и судьбы. Litres. ISBN 978-5457076075 – via Google Books.
  6. ^ Примаков Е. М. (2015). Встречи на перекрестках. T︠S︡entrpoligraf. ISBN 978-5-227-05739-6.
  7. ^ Richard C. S. Trahair; Robert L. Miller (18 October 2013). Encyclopedia of Cold War Espionage, Spies, and Secret Operations. Enigma Books. p. 346. ISBN 9781936274260.
  8. ^ Robert A. Saunders; Vlad Strukov (13 May 2010). Historical Dictionary of the Russian Federation (illustrated ed.). Scarecrow Press. p. 464. ISBN 9780810874602.
  9. ^ a b c "Russia's former PM Yevgeny Primakov dies aged 85". BBC. 26 June 2015.
  10. ^ Christopher Andrew and Vasili Mitrokhin, The Mitrokhin Archive: The KGB in Europe and the West, Gardners Books (2000), ISBN 0-14-028487-7
  11. ^ Vadim J. Birstein. The Perversion of Knowledge: The True Story of Soviet Science, Westview Press (2004) ISBN 0-8133-4280-5
  12. ^ Walton, Calder (19 July 2023). "The New Spy Wars". Foreign Affairs. ISSN 0015-7120. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
  13. ^ a b c Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States: Documents, Data, and Analysis (1997) by Zbigniew Brzezinski and Paige Sullivan, pp. 124
  14. ^ "СОЮЗ СОВЕТСКИХ СОЦИАЛИСТИЧЕСКИХ РЕСПУБЛИК". 28 September 2011. Archived from the original on 28 September 2011.
  15. ^ Primakov, Yevgeni (11 March 1991). "Diplomacy: My Final Visit with Saddam Hussein". Time. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  16. ^ Garthoff, Raymond L. (1994). The Great Transition: American-Soviet Relations and the End of the Cold War. Washington, D.C.: Brookings Institution. p. 435. ISBN 0-8157-3060-8.
  17. ^ Henriksen, Thomas H. (31 January 2022). America's Wars: Interventions, Regime Change, and Insurgencies after the Cold War (1 ed.). Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/9781009053242.003. ISBN 978-1-009-05324-2. S2CID 245293332.
  18. ^ Kello, Lucas (2017). The Virtual Weapon and International Order. Yale University Press. p. 215. ISBN 9780300226294.
  19. ^ Waller, J. Michael (15 January 1995). "Who Is Making Russian Foreign Policy?". Perspective, Boston University Institute for the Study of Conflict, Ideology and Policy.
  20. ^ Quinn, Paul (9 November 1998). "Russia's New Icon". Time. Archived from the original on 14 February 2008. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
  21. ^ [1] Archived 27 April 2005 at the Wayback Machine
  22. ^ NATO. "Founding Act on Mutual Relations, Cooperation and Security between NATO and the Russian Federation signed in Paris, France". NATO. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  23. ^ "Obituary: Yevgeny Primakov: Steel and shadows". The Economist. Retrieved 17 July 2015.
  24. ^ The Geopolitical Curse of the Caucasus (2013) by Nodar Gabashvili
  25. ^ Heintz, Jim (26 June 2015). "Former Russian PM Yevgeny Primakov dies at 85". WSPA 7. Archived from the original on 27 June 2015. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  26. ^ The Third Among the Equals. Moscow, New Delhi and Beijing are creating counter-revolutionary union Kommersant 3 June 2005
  27. ^ Chandra, Amresh (2010). "Strategic Triangle among Russia, China and India: Challenges and Prospects" (PDF). Journal of Peace Studies. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 June 2015. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  28. ^ Jolanta Darczewska, Piotr Żochowski: Active measures. Russia’s key export. OSW Point of View, No 64, June 2017.
  29. ^ Aslund, Anders (2008). "An Assessment of Putin's Economic Policy". No. 2. CESifo Forum.
  30. ^ Michael R. Gordon, Facing Severe Shortage of Food, Russia Seeks Foreign Relief Aid. New York Times, 10 October 1998. Retrieved 2016-08-09.
  31. ^ Tsygankov, Andrey P. (2013). Russia's Foreign Policy: Change and Continuity in National Identity. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 108–113. ISBN 9781442220003.
  32. ^ "Кросс по минному полю".
  33. ^ "Yeltsin Fires Prime Minister Primakov; Crisis Clouds IMF Loans, Kosovo Pact". The Wall Street Journal. 13 May 1999. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  34. ^ Lally, Kathy (13 May 2015). "Yeltsin dismisses Primakov". The Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on 27 June 2015. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  35. ^ Hoffman, David (13 May 1999). "Citing Economy, Yeltsin Fires Premier". The Washington Post. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  36. ^ "Primakov, Yevgeny Maximovich". The Columbia Encyclopedia. 2014. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  37. ^ Hoffman, David (1 January 2000). "Yeltsin Resigns: 'I Did All I Could'". The Washington Post. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  38. ^ a b Nechepurenko, Ivan (28 June 2015). "'Russian Kissinger' Yevgeny Primakov Dies at 85". The Moscow Times.
  39. ^ "База данных ФОМ > СМЕНА КАБИНЕТА: ПРЕДВАРИТЕЛЬНЫЕ ПОЛИТИЧЕСКИЕ ИТОГИ". bd.fom.ru.
  40. ^ Reynolds, Maura (18 August 1999). "Anti-Kremlin Bloc to Be Led by Primakov". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  41. ^ The 1999–2000 Elections in Russia: Their Impact and Legacy (2003) by Vicki L. Hesli and William M. Reisinger
  42. ^ Примаков Евгений Максимович (in Russian). Flb. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011. Retrieved 28 September 2010.
  43. ^ Zolotov Jr., Andrei (14 July 2000). "Primakov Finds Role in Putin's Kremlin". The Moscow Times. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  44. ^ Historical Dictionary of Russian and Soviet Foreign Policy (2014) by Norman E. Saul, pp. 293
  45. ^ "Евгений Примаков: Саддаму не дали последнего слова". Archived from the original on 19 February 2007.
  46. ^ Yossef Bodansky, The Secret History of the Iraq War. Regan Books, 2005, ISBN 0-06-073680-1
  47. ^ "Saddam execution rushed to stop him 'having last word': Primakov". Pakistan Ki Awaz. 15 January 2007. Archived from the original on 27 June 2015. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  48. ^ a b Simha, Rakesh Krishnan (30 June 2015). "Primakov: The man who created multipolarity". Modern Diplomacy.
  49. ^ "Евгений Примаков вошел в состав президиума РАН". lenta.ru.
  50. ^ "Primakov počasni doktor Univerziteta u Nišu". Južne vesti, Internet novine. 16 May 2009. Archived from the original on 30 May 2013. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  51. ^ Simons, Marlise (7 December 2004). "A Warmer Tone in Court as Milosevic Pursues His Defense". The New York Times. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  52. ^ "Primakov: Milosevic ready in principle to talk peace". CNN. 30 March 1999. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  53. ^ "Умер Евгений Примаков". Kommersant. 26 July 2015.
  54. ^ Примаков похоронен с воинскими почестями на Новодевичьем кладбище. Tacc (in Russian). Russian News Agency "TASS". 29 June 2015. Retrieved 29 June 2015.
  55. ^ Ramani, Samuel (15 July 2015). "Yevgeny Primakov- The Ideological Godfather of Putinism". HuffPost News. BuzzFeed, Inc.
  56. ^ "International Think Tank Summit "Primakov Readings"". www.imemo.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  57. ^ "В.Путин наградил Е.Примакова орденом Почета". www.allmedia.ru.
  58. ^ "Леонид Кучма наградил орденом президента ТПП РФ Евгения Примакова".[permanent dead link]
  59. ^ О награждении орденом "Данакер" Примакова Е.М. Archived 8 January 2009 at the Wayback Machine (in Russian)
  60. ^ "Евгений Примаков получил из рук Лукашенко орден Дружбы народов". Archived from the original on 28 January 2011.
  61. ^ Primakov 2004, p. 188.
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Government offices
Preceded by Director of the KGB First Chief Directorate
1991 		Position abolished
Position established Director of the USSR Centre for Strategic Research
1991
Director of the Foreign Intelligence Service
1991–1996 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Chairman of the Soviet of the Union
1989–1990 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister of Foreign Affairs
1996–1998 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Prime Minister of Russia
1998–1999 		Succeeded by
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