Marat Minyurovich Kulakhmetov ( tt-Cyrl, Марат Мөнир улы Коләхмәтов, russian: Марат Минюрович Кулахметов; born 1959 in

Penza Penza ( rus, Пе́нза, p=ˈpʲɛnzə) is the largest city and administrative center of Penza Oblast, Russia. It is located on the Sura River, southeast of Moscow. As of the 2010 Census, Penza had a population of 517,311, making it the 38th-la ...

) is a

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

of the

Russian Army The Russian Ground Forces (russian: Сухопутные войска �ВSukhoputnyye voyska V}), also known as the Russian Army (, ), are the land forces of the Russian Armed Forces. The primary responsibilities of the Russian Ground Force ...

and former commander of the Joint Peacekeeping Forces in

South Ossetia South Ossetia, ka, სამხრეთი ოსეთი, ( , ), officially the Republic of South Ossetia – the State of Alania, is a partially recognised landlocked state in the South Caucasus. It has an officially stated populat ...

, a breakaway region of

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. He was appointed by President

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...

as Russia's ambassador to South Ossetia in May 2017. Kulakhmetov was born in

Tatar The Tatars ()Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different

parents. He graduated from

Frunze Military Academy The M. V. Frunze Military Academy (russian: Военная академия имени М. В. Фрунзе), or in full the Military Order of Lenin and the October Revolution, Red Banner, Order of Suvorov Academy in the name of M. V. Frunze (rus ...

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

in 1991. In the early 2000s, he served as commander of 19th Division of the Russian Armed Forces deployed in Russia's

Republic of North Ossetia A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...

. During his tenure as a commander of the Peacekeeping Forces in South Ossetia from 2004 to 2008, Georgia accused him of supporting the South Ossetian separatists and raised the question of substituting the Russian-led peacekeeping operation with an

Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the world's largest regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization with observer status at the United Nations. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, pro ...

force prior to the 2008

Russo-Georgian War The 2008 Russo-Georgian WarThe war is known by a variety of other names, including Five-Day War, August War and Russian invasion of Georgia. was a war between Georgia, on one side, and Russia and the Russian-backed self-proclaimed republics of Sou ...

. From 2011 to 2017, Kulakhmetov served as an adviser to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation. In May 2017, he was sent as an ambassador to South Ossetia, succeeding Elbrus Kargiev.

References

1959 births Living people People from Penza Tatar people of Russia Russian major generals South Ossetia People of the Russo-Georgian War Date of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people) Frunze Military Academy alumni Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia alumni {{Russia-mil-bio-stub