On March 24, 1999, the plane of Russian Prime Minister Yevgeny Primakov flew to Washington. Over the Atlantic Ocean, he received the news that NATO had begun air strikes against Yugoslavia. Primakov ordered the crew to reverse course and return to Moscow. The “turning over the Atlantic“ became the most memorable gesture of his career and a symbol of Russia's rejection of the unipolar world order.
Primakov was born on October 29, 1929 in Kiev, and his childhood and youth were spent in Tbilisi. He graduated from the Arabic department of the Moscow Institute of Oriental Studies, then defended his scientific degree at Moscow State University.
From journalism to the Kremlin
His first major field was the Middle East. As a journalist and correspondent for “Pravda“ he worked in the region, studied Arabic and built contacts that would later prove crucial for his diplomatic career. After that, Primakov established himself as a scholar and head of leading Soviet institutes of international relations.
He was deputy director of the Institute of World Economy and International Relations, and from 1977 to 1985 he headed the Institute of Oriental Studies. During this period, his work intersected with the apparatus and foreign policy circles around Andrei Gromyko. Primakov is not just a system official, but a man who combines academic analysis, intelligence information and personal connections with leaders from the Arab world.
Therefore, he was later often described as a continuation of the Gromyko school - cautious, firm and aimed at preserving the balance between the great powers. However, Primakov added his own emphasis to this line: closer ties with China and India and the idea of a multipolar world order.
Intelligence officer, foreign minister and prime minister
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Primakov headed Russian foreign intelligence. In January 1996, he became foreign minister, and in September 1998, he took over the government at a time of severe financial and political crisis. He remained at the head of the cabinet until May 1999.
It was as prime minister that he carried out the maneuver over the Atlantic. The decision did not stop the operation against Yugoslavia, but it had a strong political effect and showed that Moscow would not unconditionally accept American leadership after the end of the Cold War.
His influence on the next generation of Russian diplomats is most evident in the attitude of Sergei Lavrov. In a statement to “Al Ahram“ Lavrov called him “my teacher“. In 2014, he also stated that historians may introduce the concept of “Primakov doctrine““ for the course towards a more independent and multipolar Russian foreign policy.
Yevgeny Primakov died on June 26, 2015 in Moscow. For some, he remains the last great Soviet statesman to adapt to post-Soviet Russia. For others, he is the architect of the diplomatic model that Sergei Lavrov continues to defend decades later.
Sources: kommersant.ru, tass.com, english.ahram.org.eg