State Department announced that the new Russian ambassador to the U.S. will present credentials on Thursday

Russia’s newly appointed ambassador to the United States will informally present his credentials to the Trump administration on Thursday, as announced by the U.S. State Department on Wednesday. Alexander Darchiev, who has recently taken on this role, is scheduled to present his credentials at 2:15 PM Eastern Time (1815 GMT), according to the department’s public agenda.

The State Department indicated that Louis L. Bono, the Senior Bureau official for the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, will be in attendance.

Since the departure of the previous ambassador in October, Moscow has been without an ambassador in the U.S. Darchiev has extensive experience, having served two significant terms at Russia’s embassy in Washington and holding the position of ambassador to Canada from 2014 to 2021. In recent years, he has been recognized for his strong public criticisms of the United States and the West, similar to other senior Russian diplomats.

Darchiev’s appointment occurs at a time when both Russia and the United States are seeking to repair their strained relations and work towards resolving the conflict in Ukraine. U.S. President Donald Trump has expressed a desire to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin soon, marking the first encounter between the leaders of the two nations since 2021.