Andrei Mikhailovich Alexandrov-Agentov
Андрей Михайлович Александров-Агентов
1918–1993
○ Natural causes
The foreign-policy aide who served four Soviet General Secretaries
“Alexandrov is the closest equivalent to me that the Soviet system has.” — Ambassador Dobrynin to Henry Kissinger, 1972.
A graduate of Swedish philology, he began his diplomatic career as a TASS correspondent in Stockholm and later as an aide to Alexandra Kollontai at the Soviet mission in Sweden. From 1961, he served as Brezhnev's assistant for international affairs and went on to advise Andropov, Chernenko, and Gorbachev in succession, becoming the central behind-the-scenes figure in Soviet foreign policy through the détente era. He personally drafted Brezhnev's foreign-policy speeches, attended US–Soviet summits, and was present at the signing of the Helsinki Accords (1975), which he regarded as the greatest achievement of his career. After retiring in 1986, he published his memoir, From Kollontai to Gorbachev.
Career Timeline
- 1940–1942TASS correspondent in Stockholm
- 1942–1947Assistant to A. M. Kollontai, USSR mission in Sweden
- 1947–1961Adviser to the Minister of Foreign Affairs
- 1961–1963Assistant to Brezhnev as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet
- 1963–1966Assistant for international affairs, Secretary/First Secretary of the CC CPSU
- 1966–1986Assistant for international affairs to the General Secretary of the CC CPSU