| Post: | Ambassador |
| Body: | the Russian Federation to the Kingdom of Belgium |
| Insignia: | MID emblem.png |
| Incumbentsince: | 16 June 2016 |
| Department: | Ministry of Foreign Affairs Embassy of Russia in Brussels |
| Style: | His Excellency The Honourable |
| Reports To: | Minister of Foreign Affairs |
| Seat: | Brussels |
| Appointer: | President of Russia |
| Termlength: | At the pleasure of the President |
| Formation: | 1853 |
| Website: | Embassy of Russia in Belgium |
| Insigniacaption: | Emblem of the Russian Foreign Ministry |
The Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the Kingdom of Belgium is the official representative of the President and the Government of the Russian Federation to the King and the Government of Belgium.
The ambassador and his staff work at large in the Embassy of Russia in Brussels.[1] There is a consulate general in Antwerp.[2] The post of Russian Ambassador to Belgium is currently held by, incumbent since 16 June 2016.[3]
See main article: Belgium–Russia relations. Diplomatic relations between the Russian Empire and Belgium were first established in 1853, with the first envoy to Belgium,, appointed on 11 April 1853. The last imperial envoy,, continued to represent Russia as an agent of the Russian Provisional Government after the February Revolution in 1917, but ceased to be recognised by the new Soviet government after the October Revolution later that year. Diplomatic relations were established between the Soviet Union and Belgium in 1935, and a new representative, was appointed on 2 November that year. His tenure came to an end with the German invasion and subsequent occupation of Belgium in 1940. Relations were restored once more in 1941 after the Soviet Union entered the war on the side of the allies, with appointed envoy to the Belgian government in exile in London. By early 1943 the mission had been upgraded to an embassy. Relations continued after the war, and with the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the incumbent Soviet ambassador,, continued as the representative of the Russian Federation until 1994.[4] [5] [6] [7] [8]
| Name | Title | Appointment | Termination | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Envoy | 11 April 1853 | 17 July 1856 | ||
| Envoy | 17 July 1856 | 16 April 1859 | ||
| Nikolay Orlov | Envoy | 3 July 1859 | 13 December 1869 | |
| Envoy | 13 December 1869 | 30 March 1886 | ||
| Envoy | 3 June 1886 | 19 November 1897 | ||
| Envoy | 4 December 1897 | 20 September 1910 | ||
| Envoy | 20 September 1910 | 17 February 1916 | ||
| Envoy | 10 March 1916 | 3 March 1917 | ||
| Name | Title | Appointment | Termination | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Envoy | 2 November 1935 | 15 July 1940 | ||
| Aleksandr Bogomolov | Envoy | 18 October 1942 | 30 November 1943 | Envoy to the Belgian government in exile in London Ambassador in 1943 |
| Ambassador | 30 November 1943 | 6 January 1945 | ||
| Ambassador | 20 March 1945 | 12 July 1946 | ||
| Ambassador | 18 August 1946 | 25 April 1950 | ||
| Viktor Avilov | Ambassador | 24 January 1953 | 9 October 1958 | |
| Ambassador | 9 October 1958 | 31 August 1962 | ||
| Ambassador | 29 September 1962 | 25 March 1967 | ||
| Ambassador | 31 March 1967 | 28 January 1969 | ||
| Ambassador | 28 June 1969 | 8 July 1971 | ||
| Vladimir Sobolev | Ambassador | 8 July 1971 | 30 April 1975 | |
| Ambassador | 30 April 1975 | 30 October 1984 | ||
| Sergey Nikitin | Ambassador | 30 November 1984 | 25 May 1987 | |
| Ambassador | 25 May 1987 | 8 June 1990 | ||
| Nikolay Afanasevsky | Ambassador | 24 June 1990 | 25 December 1991 | |
| Name | Title | Appointment | Termination | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nikolay Afanasevsky | Ambassador | 25 December 1991 | 3 October 1994 | |
| Vitaly Churkin | Ambassador | 3 October 1994 | 25 February 1998 | |
| Sergey Kislyak | Ambassador | 25 February 1998 | 28 May 2003 | |
| Ambassador | 30 September 2004 | 27 October 2009 | ||
| Ambassador | 18 December 2009 | 16 June 2016 | ||
| Ambassador | 16 June 2016 | |||