He has no idea, he underestimated Ukraine, he thought there was no nation like Ukraine, and of course they will not stand against Russian aggression. He thought there was no unity in the West … he underestimated Europe the same way.

Andrei Kozyrev

Andrey Vladimirovich Kozyrev (Russian: Андре́й Влади́мирович Ко́зырев; born 27 March 1951) is a Russian politician who served as the former and the first Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation under President Boris Yeltsin, in office for the Russian SFSR from October 1990 and since 1992 for Russia after the Dissolution of the Soviet Union until January 1996. In his position he was credited with developing Russia's foreign policy immediately after the fall of the Soviet Union, although many in Russia have criticized him for being weak and not assertive enough in defending Russian interests in the face of NATO in places like Bosnia and Iraq. He was the Russian representative during the signing of the Oslo I Accord. For this he took a lot of criticism from the nationalist politicians and parties. He also received positive reviews for his criticism of imperialism and improved relations with the West. Kozyrev had graduated from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) with a Ph.D. in history before joining the Soviet Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1974, holding various positions in it before being appointed foreign minister.

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