List of ambassadors of Russia to Benin

Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Benin
Emblem of the Russian Foreign Ministry
Incumbent Igor Yevdokimov  [ ru ] since 7 August 2017
Ministry of Foreign Affairs Embassy of Russia in Cotonou
Style	His Excellency The Honourable
Reports to	Minister of Foreign Affairs
Seat	Cotonou
Appointer	President of Russia
Term length	At the pleasure of the President
Formation	1963
First holder	Anvar Kuchkarov  [ ru ]
Website	Embassy of Russia in Benin

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. ^{[1] [2]}

The ambassador and his staff work at large in the Embassy of Russia in Cotonou. ^[3] The post of Russian Ambassador to Benin is currently held by Igor Yevdokimov  [ ru ], incumbent since 7 August 2017. ^[4] Since 1992 the Russian Ambassador to Benin has been concurrently accredited to Togo.

History of diplomatic relations

Main article: Benin–Russia 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. ^{[1] [5]} The first Soviet ambassador, Anvar Kuchkarov  [ ru ], the incumbent ambassador to Togo, was dual accreditation on 10 August 1963. ^{[1] [5]} The Soviet embassy in Dahomey opened in May 1966, with Aleksandr Abramov  [ ru ] appointed ambassador solely to Dahomey on 4 May 1966. ^{[1] [5]} 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. ^[1] Zhuravlyov's successor, Yury Chepik  [ ru ], was appointed as ambassador to Benin and concurrently to Togo.

List of representatives (1963 – present)

Representatives of the Soviet Union to the Republic of Dahomey (1963 – 1975)

Name	Title	Appointment	Termination	Notes
Anvar Kuchkarov  [ ru ]	Ambassador	10 August 1963	4 May 1966	Concurrently as ambassador to Togo
Aleksandr Abramov  [ ru ]	Ambassador	4 May 1966	17 August 1968	First accredited only to, and based in, Dahomey
Vyacheslav Karetkin  [ ru ]	Ambassador	17 August 1968	11 November 1969
Igor Zhukovsky  [ ru ]	Ambassador	11 November 1969	13 April 1975
Ivan Ilin  [ ru ]	Ambassador	13 April 1975	30 November 1975

Representatives of the Soviet Union to the Republic of Benin (1975 – 1991)

Name	Title	Appointment	Termination	Notes
Ivan Ilin  [ ru ]	Ambassador	30 November 1975	8 April 1979
Vitaly Agapov  [ ru ]	Ambassador	8 April 1979	29 August 1985
Valentin Pavlov  [ ru ]	Ambassador	29 August 1985	24 July 1990
Vitaly Zhuravlyov	Ambassador	24 July 1990	25 December 1991

Representatives of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Benin (1991 – present)

Name	Title	Appointment	Termination	Notes
Vitaly Zhuravlyov	Ambassador	25 December 1991	22 April 1992
Yury Chepik  [ ru ]	Ambassador	22 April 1992	8 May 1998
Vladimir Timofeyev  [ ru ]	Ambassador	8 May 1998	17 July 2002
Vladimir Timoshenko	Ambassador	17 July 2002	30 June 2008
Yury Grashchenkov	Ambassador	30 June 2008	31 May 2013
Oleg Kovalchuk  [ ru ]	Ambassador	31 May 2013	7 August 2017
Igor Yevdokimov  [ ru ]	Ambassador	7 August 2017

References

1. Дагомея, с 30.11.1975 - Бенин (in Russian). Справочник по истории Коммунистической партии и Советского Союза 1898 - 1991. Archived from the original on 2017-11-23. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
2. ПОСЛЫ РОССИЙСКОЙ ФЕДЕРАЦИИ В СТРАНАХ АФРИКАНСКОГО РЕГИОНА (in Russian). Worldwide Historical Project. Archived from the original on 2011-09-28. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
3. "Посольство Российской Федерации в Республике Бенин и Тоголезской Республике" (in Russian). Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Russia) . Retrieved 4 October 2019.
4. "Чрезвычайный и Полномочный Посол Российской Федерации в Республике Бенин" (in Russian). Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Russia) . Retrieved 4 October 2019.
5. "Российско-бенинские отношения". benin.mid.ru. Retrieved 4 October 2019.