Putin appoints first deputy minister for foreign affairs

MOSCOW — Russian President Vladimir Putin made significant appointments in the nation’s defence and diplomatic leadership, naming Anna Tsivileva as State Secretary and Deputy Minister of Defence, and Sergei Butin as First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Tsivileva, who has served as a deputy minister of defence since June 2024, will now take on the additional role of State Secretary within the ministry, Xinhua news agency reported.

Her responsibilities will include overseeing social and housing support for military personnel and liaising with the “Defenders of the Fatherland” state fund, which supports participants in the special military operation.

Tsivileva was born in 1972 in Ivanovo to a family of doctors. She holds degrees in psychiatry, healthcare organisation, and public health from Ivanovo State Medical Academy and the Russian University of Peoples’ Friendship. Additionally, she earned a Master’s in Business Administration from the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration in 2021.

In the diplomatic sector, Butin has been appointed as the First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Butin, born in 1964, is a seasoned diplomat with extensive experience in both domestic and international assignments. He graduated from the Institute of Asian and African Studies at Moscow State University and is fluent in English and Japanese.

Since 1996, Butin has held various positions within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and abroad, notably in Japan. From 2017 to 2023, Butin headed the secretariat of the Foreign Minister. In May 2023, he was appointed Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs to oversee personnel matters and the General Secretariat.\

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