Russia’s combative ambassador to the United Nations died Monday, apparently of a heart attack, in Manhattan, officials and sources said.
Vitaly Churkin, 64, had represented Russia at the UN since 2006. He was known as a champion of Moscow who did not hesitate to highlight what he called hypocrisy inherent in U.S. foreign policy.
Police arrived at Russia’s UNMission on E. 67th St. at 9:30 a.m. and found the diplomat in cardiac arrest, sources said. He was declared dead at New York-Presbyterian Hospital Weill Cornell. No foul play is suspected, police sources said.
Samantha Power, former U.S. ambassador to the UN, tweeted that Churkin was a “diplomatic maestro and deeply caring man” who did all he could to bridge differences between the U.S. and Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin praised Churkin’s professionalism and diplomacy, according to the state news agency TASS.
“The president was grieved to learn about the death of Vitaly Churkin,” spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Churkin died “unexpectedly” and noted that Tuesday would have been his birthday.
“Great diplomat. Uncommon personality. Brilliant person. We lost one of our own,” she wrote on Facebook.
Churkin’s death is the third recent surprising loss for Russia’s diplomatic corps. On U.S. Election Day, a 63-year-old security officer died at the same consulate where Churkin fell ill. BuzzFeed identified the officer as Sergei Krivov.
On Dec. 19, Russia’s ambassador to Turkey was assassinated at an art exhibit in Ankara.
Churkin had a reputation for an acute wit and sharp repartee, especially with his American and Western counterparts. He was the longest-serving member of the Security Council, the UN’s most powerful body.
When Power accused Syria, Russia and Iran last year of bearing responsibility for atrocities in Syria, Churkin said she was forgetting the United States’ own sins in the Middle East.
“The weirdest speech to me was the one by the U.S. representative, who built her statement as if she is Mother Teresa herself. Please, remember which country you represent. Please, remember the track record of your country,” he said.
Churkin’s daughter Anastasia Churkina is a reporter for RT, the state-run Russian television network.
His death comes amid heightened scrutiny of the Trump administration’s ties to Russia.
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