Anatoly Iosifovich Lavrentiev (; 1904 – 1984) was a

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

diplomat. He served as the head of the

People's Commissariat for Foreign Affairs of the Russian SFSR The People's Commissariat for Foreign Affairs of the Russian SFSR (: Narodnyi Komissariat Inostrannykh Del – abbreviated to Narkomindel or NKID) was the central executive state body of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic responsible f ...

in the

Soviet government The Government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) was the executive and administrative organ of the highest body of state authority, the All-Union Supreme Soviet. It was formed on 30 December 1922 and abolished on 26 December 199 ...

from 8 March 1944 to 13 March 1946. He was a member of the CPSU (b).

Biography

Lavrentiev graduated from the

Moscow Power Engineering Institute National Research University "Moscow Power Engineering Institute" (MPEI; ) is a public university based in Moscow, Russia. It offers training in the fields of Power Engineering, Electric Engineering, Radio Engineering, Electronics, Information ...

in 1931 and became a teacher at the Institute. From 1938 to 1939, he worked as an employee of the apparatus of the

People's Commissariat of Heavy Industry The People's Commissariat of Heavy Industry (Narkomtiazhprom; ) was a government ministry in the Soviet Union in the 1930s. which operated the electric power system in the Soviet Union was subordinated to the commissariat. Brief overview The Peop ...

of the USSR. In 1939, he was the head of the Eastern European department of the USSR

People's Commissariat of Foreign Affairs The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics () was founded on 6 July 1923. It had three names during its existence: People's Commissariat for Foreign Affairs (1923–1946), Ministry of Foreign Affairs (1946–1991) ...

. From 1939 to 1940, he was the ambassador of the USSR in Bulgaria. From 1940 to 1941, he served as Plenipotentiary representative of the USSR in Romania and in 1941, he served as the Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Envoy of the USSR in Romania. From 1941 to 1943, he served as a responsible officer of the

TASS The Russian News Agency TASS, or simply TASS, is a Russian state-owned news agency founded in 1904. It is the largest Russian news agency and one of the largest news agencies worldwide. TASS is registered as a Federal State Unitary Enterpri ...

. In 1943, he served as the Head of the European Department of the USSR People's Commissariat of Foreign Affairs. From 1943 to 1944, he served as Head of the Middle East Department of the USSR People's Commissariat of Foreign Affairs. From 1944 to 1946, he served as People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the Russian SFSR. From 1946 to 1949, he served as Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the USSR in Yugoslavia. From 1949 to 1951, he served as Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the USSR. From 1951 to 1952, he served as Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the USSR in Czechoslovakia. According to the CIA report, Lavrentiev was "one of the Kremlin's most ruthless and competent foreign affairs officials." From 1952 to 1953, he served as Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the USSR in Romania. From 1953 to 1956, he served as Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the USSR in Iran. He met Iran's prime minister,

Mohammad Mosaddegh Mohammad Mosaddegh (, ; 16 June 1882 – 5 March 1967) was an Iranian politician, author, and lawyer who served as the 30th Prime Minister of Iran from 1951 to 1953, elected by the 1950 Iranian legislative election, 16th Majlis. He was a membe ...

, in 1953 and brought forth the Soviet agenda in Iran. After the fall of Mosaddegh in the

1953 Iranian coup d'état The 1953 Iranian coup d'état, known in Iran as the 28 Mordad coup d'état (), was the overthrow of Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh on 19 August 1953. Led by the Iranian army and supported by the United States and the United Kingdom, the co ...

, he tried to commit suicide. He was briefly withdrawn but again reinstalled and returned to his post in Iran. From 1956 to 1970, he served as an employee of the central apparatus of the USSR Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lavrentiev, Anatoly 1904 births 1984 deaths Academic staff of Moscow Power Engineering Institute Ambassadors of the Soviet Union to Bulgaria Ambassadors of the Soviet Union to Czechoslovakia Ambassadors of the Soviet Union to Iran Ambassadors of the Soviet Union to Romania Ambassadors of the Soviet Union to Yugoslavia Communist Party of the Soviet Union members Moscow Power Engineering Institute alumni Recipients of the Order of the Badge of Honour Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour Burials at Vvedenskoye Cemetery Deputy ministers of foreign affairs of the Soviet Union